The Man Who Saved the World
by Aline Riva
Summary: When a scientist prevents the Cybermen from stealing a valuable power core, the Doctor and Ace are there to help - but then Ace falls in love with Professor Devon Travis, without knowing his act of bravery may cost him his life through radiation poisoning. Will Ace ever forgive the Doctor for remaining silent about the Professor's tragic secret when the truth is revealed?
1. Chapter 1

The Man Who Saved the World

* * *

Summary

When the Tardis receives an alert indicating a possible Cyberman attack on Earth, the Doctor lands in the Coalfell research centre, a base with a network of underground tunnels that hide many security secrets – and they find the place devastated and all employees dead, except for two survivors – Laura Smith, a security guard who was deep underground when the attack happened, and Professor Devon Travis, who managed to break through a complicated security system to protect an alien artefact.

The Doctor explains that the artefact is a rare super charged power core, originating from the planet Xethea, and no doubt came from a crashed ship – he explains the reason Earth scientists could not open the container was because it had a double trigger on the lock – one to begin a count down to trigger a huge nuclear explosion, the other to cancel out the threat of world destruction by breaking the shield – _and_ emitting a dose of Xaygrolium radiation, intended to kill the perpetrator of the potential theft.

When Devon explains he broke the shield to stop the count down triggered by the Cybermen and to save the power core from falling into enemy hands, the Doctor knows what this means – that Devon has absorbed a fatal dose of alien radiation, which will slowly kill him. And as Devon and Ace become closer, the Doctor urges Devon to tell Ace the truth, but Devon is still hoping the Doctor's time machine can take him away to a place and time where a cure exists. And the Doctor leaves the matter in Devon's hands, as he finds himself strongly drawn to security guard Laura, who reminds him of Ace in many ways...

For a while they remain trapped at the research centre, as the Cybership in the skies above locks down shields and sends in a search party when life forms are detected – and then the Doctor and Ace must find a way to escape.

But once escape happens, the Doctor finds he could lose Ace forever when she discovers the truth about her lover and begs the Doctor to try and find a way to save his life before it is too late, and then she demands to know _why _he kept such a terrible secret from her for so long...

Is Ace about to lose the man she loves, and can she ever forgive the Doctor for holding back the truth, when he knew it right from the start but chose to stay silent, and will this mark the end of their friendship once and for all?

* * *

Rated: T

* * *

Warnings: This is a heavy duty hurt/comfort fic with a very emotional storyline that deals with the subject of mortality, and other adult situations.

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Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction I own nothing.

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Chapter 1

Her back was against the wall and the corridor was in darkness.

The security guard raised her radio and spoke into it again.

"_HQ...come in! Come in, this is Security agent Laura Smith, I'm in tunnel 112...all quiet down here but what the hell has happened up there?"_

She listened, hearing no reply but the hiss of static that seemed amplified in the dim and chilly corridor.

"_Please, someone, anyone!"_

And again there was nothing but the hiss of static that filled the corridor.

Then she heard a heavy footstep and as she turned to see a shadow fall across the end of the tunnel, she gripped her laser gun in both hands with a steady aim, her eyes widening as she drew in a sharp breath, taking in the sight of the giant metal man who stood with his back to her...

She recalled all the briefings about threats to the earth, and possible attacks from alien forces due to the nature of the work down here at Coalfell Research Base...

Then she knew what she was looking at:

_A Cyberman..._

She kept her steady aim as she stayed close to the wall, making her way forward slowly and carefully, towards the enemy. She had no clue how powerful its weaponry was, or if she would be killed or upgraded to join the Cyberfleet, but the enemy was on home ground and it was her duty to defend it, and defend it she would, even if it meant losing her own life in the process. It would be better to die fighting than to be forced to join the Cyber race...

And then the Cyberman lowered its weapon, stood perfectly still, shimmered and vanished from sight.

Laura stopped walking, looking in confusion at the end of the corridor.

That thing had simply vanished... _teleported _out of here?

She kept the weapon in a firm grip, rounding the corner sharply – but the Cyberman was gone.

And then she listened, hearing the wail of the intruder alert going on and on with no sign of stopping. That was the only sound she could hear, as if the rest of the building was dead...

And as that siren wailed, she made her way to a lift, pressed the button and as the doors slid open she was greeted by the sight of two colleagues, slumped against each other on the floor, both shot to death by alien weaponry.

Laura stepped over the bodies, got into the lift and hit the button for the ground floor, keeping her weapon tight in her hand as she wondered if any Cybermen still remained in the building. Her grip on the gun was ice cold as she shivered and tried to block out the thought of the bodies that lay at her feet, and then the lift began to ascend, taking her to the ground floor, where she could only guess at what other terrible sights awaited her...

* * *

The Tardis was heading for Earth rapidly as the Doctor pressed buttons and turned dials.

"It was there, and then it was gone...Ace, this could be bad news..."

Ace stood next to the console, looking to the Professor and then to the screen that showed starry space above earth, now the silver ship that had hovered above was gone – faded out in the blink of an eye...

"Professor, I don't get what's happened... you saw a ship and you said _Cybermen,_ but it's gone now and -"

The Doctor looked up sharply from the console.

"I'm detecting a trace that runs to a place called Coalfell, it's an underground research centre specialising in the examination of alien artefacts – that's where they keep a Xetheanian super charged power core – tiny thing in a tamper proof vault...it's the most powerful substance in the universe, that core could keep the Cyber fleet running for a million years!"

"Then what was it doing on Earth?"

"Good question, Ace – I'd guess it came from a crashed ship. But those power cores have a double security system... I'm guessing the Cybermen didn't get what they wanted, other wise your planet would have been torn apart by a massive nuclear explosion and it hasn't happened yet...so what _has_ happened? This is what I don't understand, they just left...I think they're hiding, maybe cloaked...they're still about, above Earth – they want that power core. "

And he met her gaze as his eyes darkened.

"_They won't be getting their hands on it as long as I'm around!"_

And he threw a lever and the Tardis vanished, reappearing on the surface of Earth moments later.

* * *

As the wheezing groan faded out and the Tardis fell silent save for the usual hum it gave off quietly, Ace looked worried as the Doctor put on his hat and grabbed his umbrella.

"Nitro nine?"

"Possibly, even though I hate the stuff. Hurry up, Ace...It's too quiet out there..."

And as she hurried off to grab her rucksack, he turned to the viewing port and took in the sight of a large, grey-bricked building, where smoke poured out of a downstairs window and on a floor above a technician in a lab coat hung half out of a broken window, her white coat stained scarlet as she leaned over, her face towards the brickwork and fair hair blowing in the breeze.

"_I think they're all dead," _he murmured,_ "I think they killed them all..."_

Then Ace was back, her face pale as she caught sight of the view on the screen.

"Is that a dead body?"

"Expect to see many more," the Doctor replied, "I doubt they would have left anyone alive in there."

And then he opened the door and went outside and Ace followed, pausing to double check her base ball bat was safely tucked into the back of her rucksack.

As the Doctor hurried across the grass towards the building, Ace ran to catch up with him.

"So you think everyone's dead?" she asked, slowing her pace as she looked up at the building.

"Everyone above and below ground!" the Doctor's eyes had darkened with anger now, "I _knew_ they had the power core here...they thought it would be safe, hidden away in a secret base in the countryside...I warned them! I said to keep it with UNIT! I was planning to pick it up and return it to its home planet – I should have got here sooner, I should have known -"

He paused, seeing her hand on his arm, then he looked into her eyes and saw a soft, understanding gaze.

"You can't know absolutely everything, Professor. No one can. Don't blame yourself."

He shrugged off her touch and it made her heart ache in a way she couldn't define as she saw her words had offered little consolation to the man who hated violence and always wished he could save everyone, no matter how dire the circumstances.

"People have died," he said in a low voice, "All we can do now is look for survivors and find that power core."

And he made his way to the main building and Ace followed on, slowing her pace again as she saw the glass doors at the entrance had been shattered. Beyond it, fading smoke was trailing out and bodies were littered all over the main reception area.

* * *

The Doctor stepped through the door frame and went in first.

Ace stepped over the frame and looked around at the men and women who were lifeless on the floor, some had no visible signs of injury and there was a sour smell that hung in the air.

"What is that stink?" she said in a hushed voice.

"Poison gas," the Doctor replied, "I'm guessing they came in and gassed the place, then shot the ones the gas didn't reach... but we're safe now, their kind of technology works fast and fades out fast, that _stink_, as you put it, is what's left of the toxins breaking up in the air. It won't harm you – but it certainly did its work on the rest of these people."

As they made their way carefully over fallen bodies, the Doctor went behind the desk, carefully shifted the slumped body of a woman from the switchboard and reached for a key and turned it, silencing the wail of the alarm.

And then as no sound could be heard, Ace listened harder, hoping to hear signs of life, the faintest breath, but heard none.

She shivered as she looked back at the bodies.

"Why are so many of them out here by the entrance?"

"I'm guessing they heard the alarm and started evacuating the building," he said to her, "And the Cybermen were waiting for them. They stood no chance."

"I feel sick," Ace said quietly.

"It won't get any easier," he reminded her, "Two thirds of this facility is under ground. I can only guess what we might find down there."

Ace drew in a deep breath, swallowed and tried to ignore the stink in the air and the bodies on the floor as she fought against the urge to throw up, mainly because if she did, she knew she would be puking on a dead person, and she really didn't want _that_ to happen...

"We need to search the lower floors," the Doctor said, and Ace carefully stepped over the last of the bodies as she followed.

"Professor," she said as he hit the call button, "When this is over, when we leave – _please _can we find another way out?"

And then the lift doors opened and they stepped inside.

* * *

As the lift began to descend, Ace felt her throat go tight.

The lift didn't smell of the poison that lingered in the air, nor did it smell of death, but there was a blood stain on the carpet.

"There's no body," she said in a hushed voice, looking down at the stain, "Professor, why would there be a stain but no body? I didn't see any stains on the floor by the lift when we got in...did someone move some bodies?"

"There could be survivors," the Doctor agreed, "I hope there are - "

And then he fell silent and Ace saw a brief flash of alarm in his eyes and that look scared her, because it meant he had just thought of something she had missed, and it wasn't going to be anything good...

"Professor?"

He met her gaze.

"I was just thinking – this is a top secret base, the alarm was on when we got here..so why has no help arrived?"

And the lift came to a stop and the doors opened.

The Doctor thoughtfully ran the tip of his umbrella across the fresh blood that marked the carpet.

"Why indeed..." he said thoughtfully, and then he stepped out of the lift and Ace followed nervously, into a dimly lit and chilly corridor.

* * *

"_Drop your weapons now!"_

The Doctor and Ace turned to see a woman standing in the corridor, she wore a dark security uniform and her eyes were fixed on them with suspicion as she pointed a laser weapon.

"We're not the enemy!" Ace said quickly.

The Doctor had both hands in the air, including the one that clutched his umbrella, and he dowered them as the look in the woman's eyes changed at once.

"I'm the Doctor, this is Ace...We're here to help!"

"You're too late. They came out of nowhere, they killed everyone...metal men, huge robot things...I believe they were Cybermen...I only saw one of them...in the tunnel, before it teleported...never seen anything like it before.."

She was talking as she walked towards them, and now the weapon was holstered at her side once more.

As she joined them, the Doctor caught a look of shock in the eyes of the slender young woman with cropped fair hair.

"I think they killed everyone. I don't know, I was down here on routine patrol when the alarm sounded...HQ called me to say there was trouble but then the signal went dead...I'm Laura Smith, Head of Security patrols."

And she held out her hand and the Doctor briefly grasped it, wishing he could warm away the chill from her flesh, for it was the kind of chill only shock could bring on.

"I'm the Doctor," he said again, "I'm a Time Lord – I believe the Cybermen were after the power core. I don't understand how they left without it and how they didn't trigger the nuclear device. By now the world should have ended. But it didn't, and I want to know why, because they would have tampered with the lock on the chamber for sure, yet some how, that device didn't go off. _Someone just saved the Earth_."

Laura's eyes filled with confusion.

"But no one can touch the core. It's double locked, the detonation couldn't be cancelled without breaking the radioactive seal."

"And if the Cybermen didn't do it?" the Doctor pondered, "Who did?"

She shook her head.

"Not me! I know all about how lethal that thing can be, I'm top ranking security, I know all about the power core – the main thing to know is, _never_ go near the chamber where its kept!"

And then she looked into the Doctor's eyes.

"Please tell me you think there could be survivors here."

The Doctor looked back at her sadly.

"We came in through the main entrance. Everyone who was being evacuated died. We came straight to the basement to work our way up and find the power core and look for survivors. I don't think there's much chance of any being found above ground."

"There isn't any above ground. I've seen the CCTV on floor One – the upper part of the building is mostly empty, there's a few bodies on the first floor and the rest seem to be on the ground floor. But I don't know about down here."

"This floor is empty," she confirmed, "I've already done a sweep."

And she headed for the lift and the Doctor and Ace joined her as she pressed the button for the next floor and the doors slid shut once more.

Ace looked down at the blood on the carpet.

"Someone moved some bodies."

"That was me," Laura said, "I moved them to the ground floor. This is the only lift still working and I just couldn't..."

"I know, I'd feel the same," Ace told her, "This is horrible...everyone's dead."

* * *

The lift came to a stop and the doors opened into another cold and dimly lit corridor.

Ace exchanged a hesitant glance with Laura, and the Doctor spoke up.

"I'll lead the way," he said, "I doubt if we'll need your bat, Ace, or your pistol, Laura – all we can hope for now is to find survivors."

And they followed him out of the lift, Laura paused to look behind her where the corridor stretched off into semi darkness as she recalled the sight of the Cyberman standing there.

"I saw it for few seconds," she said as they walked up the corridor, "and then it just vanished – like it was teleported away."

"Most likely sent back to the mother ship," the Doctor replied, "I saw the ship vanish but I don't know if it's left or if it's cloaked - "

"It could still be up there?" Laura said in alarm.

"We don't know anything for sure," Ace told her, "Let's just look for survivors and let the Professor work out the rest..."

And then she shivered, feeling the chill of the underground tunnel, but at the same time feeling glad that at least it didn't stink down here.

"Tell me what's on this floor," the Doctor said to Laura.

She indicated to a door at the end of the corridor.

"That's where we keep the power core."

Ace glanced at the Doctor.

"And it's dangerous – even for you?"

"I shall have my wits about me," he promised her, "I know all about this double trap to keep the core safe from theft. I have to go in there, I need to be certain the bomb isn't still on some kind of slow countdown."

"And if it is?"

They had reached the doorway.

The Doctor looked to Ace.

"I will have to find a way to shut it down, won't I?"

Laura took a card from her pocket and swiped the lock.

There was a beep and the metal door slid back, revealing a small narrow tunnel that led to another locked door.

The Doctor stepped into the tunnel.

Laura turned to Ace.

"So you travel with him all the time?"

Ace nodded.

"I try and keep him out of trouble, yes."

"I bet you never expected a situation like this!" she exclaimed, and Ace briefly smiled.

"Trust me, this is just another day!" she told her.

The Doctor's voice echoed back as he called to them from inside the tunnel.

"Laura, I need you to unlock this door."

"_There's no need...I smashed the field trigger and took the core... it's locked in a custom made container inside a security case..Only I know the combination. I stopped the bomb...I stopped it."_

Ace and Laura turned away from the tunnel as the Doctor also turned his head, wondering who had just spoken.

They turned to see a man leaning against the wall of the corridor. He looked to be around forty, and he was breathless and looked exhausted, his dark hair was damp with sweat and his dark suit was marked with burns to the fabric.

"Who are you?" Ace said, and he slid down the wall, then leaned against it as he closed his eyes and took in some deep breaths.

"Are you all right?" she asked as she fell to her knees beside him.

"Professor Travis?" Laura said in surprise, but his eyes were still closed as he fought for air.

Ace looked back at the Doctor as he came out of the tunnel.

"I think he's hurt!"

"_Yes,"_ the Doctor replied quietly, as he considered the fact that Professor Travis had stopped the bomb, had shattered the energy field to remove the power core and had just received a huge dose of alien radiation. _This was the man who had saved the world, and signed his own death warrant in the process..._

Ace was looking anxiously at him.

"Say something...please don't die...we have to save someone, everyone else is dead!"

And he opened his eyes and looked at the young woman knelt beside him and managed a smile.

"Maybe I am dead... if I am, this has to be heaven. If I'm dreaming, it's a good one..."

Pain briefly registered on his face, and then he held out his hand.

"Professor Devon Travis," he said, "Nice to meet you."

Ace clasped his hand and smiled, looking into deep blue eyes that sparkled despite his discomfort.

"Ace McShane," she said, "And I'm honoured to meet you – thanks for saving the world."

For a moment his hand remained in her grip, and then he let go.

"I just knew I had to stop that count down. The Cybermen tried to force the door and the trigger was set and the countdown started. They retreated to await further instruction and I used my ID, went in there and smashed the radioactive seal. That shut down the timer and I took the power core. They came back to find no power core and the bomb switched off. I hid further up the corridor and watched as they teleported out of here. It was a while until I could get up off the floor again..."

And he looked up at the Doctor.

"Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor," he replied, "A time traveller. I'm associated with UNIT and I wanted that core off these premises a long time ago, to avoid a situation like this."

Devon's eyes widened.

"A time traveller? Doctor, could you help me -"

"Perhaps," the Doctor replied, and Ace briefly looked confused as she wondered what that question had been about, but then Devon made a move to stand, and struggled, so she and Laura helped him up, then he leaned against the wall once more, took in a few more breaths and managed to stand unaided.

"Where's the power core?" the Doctor asked.

"In a locked case in that room over there," he said, gesturing to a nearby doorway.

"Thanks," the Doctor replied, and he opened the door, went inside and came out carrying a small metal briefcase with a digital lock.

"We should go back to the Tardis. I can scan the building for further signs of life – we can't waste any more time," he said as he made his way back to the lift.

Devon stumbled and Ace put her arm a round him, supporting him as they stepped into the lift.

"But I thought you wanted to look for survivors?" Laura said.

The Doctor hit the button for the ground floor and the doors closed and the lift began to climb.

"No time," he replied, "The Tardis can do a scan, if we find anyone you or Ace can go back to fetch them. I have to lock this power core away in the Tardis. The Cybermen have less chance of picking up its signal from there."

And then the doors opened and the Doctor caught the look on her face as she was greeted yet again by the sight of many dead bodies.

"Sorry Ace," he said, "We don't have time to find another way out."

And then he walked out of the lift and carefully stepped over the dead, and Ace and Laura followed, supporting Devon, who was leaning heavier against Ace with every step she took towards the door.

* * *

They left the building and made their way across the lawn, and Ace took in a deep breath of fresh air that carried no stink of poison gas or death. Then as the Doctor went inside the Tardis she breathed a relieved sigh as she and Laura helped Devon inside.

"It's never been so good to be home!" she exclaimed.

The Tardis door closed and Laura and Devon looked around the console room in surprise.

"It's -"

"Bigger on the inside, yeah, yeah. We hear it all the time!" Ace told Laura, and then as Devon stumbled again, she held him up and glanced at the Doctor, who was busy locking the case containing the power core beneath the Tardis console.

"He needs to lie down."

"Then take him to your room," the Doctor said, "I have to searched for that cloaked Cybership."

Devon was still sweating heavily as he looked at Ace.

"Thanks for your help," he said to her.

"No problem," she replied and helped him out of the console room and down the Tardis corridor towards her own room.

Laura hung back, watching as the Doctor worked.

"Do you think the Cybermen might still be out there?"

He locked away the power core and looked up from the console.

As their eyes met he spoke softly, seeing fear in her eyes as she recalled the massacre that had killed her colleagues.

"If they are, I can honestly say I can handle them," he promised her, "Don't worry, Laura – you're quite safe."

"Thanks," she said quietly, and their eyes locked for a moment, and the Doctor suddenly thought how much she reminded him of Ace, and then wondered if that was why he had felt a sudden warmth in his heart as he looked at her, but then he remembered they were in the middle of a crisis, and he turned back to the console and began to scan for signs of the concealed Cybership once more.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Laura leaned on the console as she looked through the viewing port at the sight of the devastated research facility.

"I can't believe they're all gone," she said quietly, "And it happened so fast..."

"As these things often do," the Doctor replied with a sigh, "A fraction of a second can change the world. I wish I'd seen this coming so I could have stopped it."

And he kept his gaze on the screen on the console, searching for a trace of the Cyber ship, but saw none. And then a thought hit him and he looked up.

"Laura..."

She turned from the viewing port and met his gaze.

"What is it, Doctor?"

"Did Professor Travis know how dangerous the power core was?"

"Of course. We all did. I can't believe he's still alive! He's been lucky."

"_Lucky?"_

She looked at him in confusion.

"Well he's okay, he's still alive. I thought that thing was supposed to be fatal if it was tampered with."

And then it hit him:

_Yes, Travis knew...that was why he had asked if he could help him. But Laura, being security and not scientific staff, had no way of knowing what had happened when the Professor had shattered the radioactive seal._

_Devon Travis was hoping he could use the Tardis to take him somewhere that could cure the radiation poisoning._

_But the truth was, there was no known cure in existence for the kind of radiation that had protected that core. He was a dying man, and he knew it – but Laura didn't know that yet and neither did Ace..._

The Doctor made a silent decision that he would do all he could to help Devon, but he suspected little could really be achieved. And he would not be breaking the news of his condition to Ace or Laura – it was Devon's business, and breaking that kind of news would have to come from him, if he chose to share it, when he eventually realised no cure could be found.

The Doctor felt heavy in his hearts at the thought that it seemed there was little he could do, he didn't want to give up on the man who had just saved Earth from destruction, but as far as he was aware, there was no cure for Xaygrolium radiation poisoning. It was a slow and painful way to die. The Doctor didn't know how much time he had – probably much longer than he imagined, if he could receive treatment. _But there was no cure. Devon Travis was a dying man, and he knew it, and he was desperately clinging to hope of a cure that most likely did not exist..._

"He's been really lucky," Laura said again, and the Doctor nodded.

"I'm sure he has," he replied quietly, keeping the dying man's secret, "Although he will probably feel quite unwell to begin with. I'd expect those effects to wear off in a few days."

And then he fell silent again, omitting the fact that after the initial exposure, it would take several days for the true effects of the poisoning to become known.

_And he still wanted to save him._ _The man had saved a world – the least he felt he ought to do was try and save his life in return..._

And then the scanner flashed and the Doctor gave a heavy sigh.

"The Cyber ship is still around," he said, indicating to a faint, ghostly outline just above the Earth, "It's heavily cloaked, but definitely still there."

Laura looked down at the screen and then as she met the Doctor's gaze he caught that look in her eyes again and wanted to hold her tightly and make a promise that all would be well, but he held back.

"Why is it just waiting there?"

"I don't know," he replied, "Maybe its looking for the Tardis, or perhaps scanning for the power core – that nuclear device has made them nervous – well, as concerned as emotionless pieces of metal can be – they know they almost destroyed themselves and the mother ship when they triggered the count down. I think they fear tripping it again. They don't know it's permanently turned off. And that's a good thing..."

"In what way?"

The Doctor shook his head.

"I'm not sure yet. I won't know more until they make a move. But we need to get away from here – I need to find a place where Devon can get some treatment, and sooner rather than later."

"But he's okay."

The Doctor looked at her sadly, and then forced a brief smile.

"I'm sure he is," he replied, "But we still need to get out of here, I can't relax knowing the Cybermen could turn up at any minute."

And he looked at Laura and she smiled.

"Getting out of here sounds like a good idea," she agreed, and he smiled too, and it was there again, that warmth, a connection that made him wish for more, and under better circumstances.

"Are you and Ace -"

"Together?" he wondered, "No, not in that sense. Friends, yes, very close. But not together."

"Okay, I was just asking..." she avoided his gaze for a moment, and as she looked back at him, the Doctor was still looking at her thoughtfully.

"It's perfectly okay to ask, Laura," he said warmly, and then he threw a switch on the console.

The Tardis wheezed and groaned and wheezed again – and failed to take off.

The Doctor's eyes widened as he looked down at the controls.

"_No._.. _NO!_" he said urgently, and tried the controls again.

As the Tardis failed to take off a second time, he shut down the take off mode as he stared in disbelief at the ghostly image on the scanner.

"We're locked in!" he exclaimed, "The Cyber ship has locked down the whole area! That's why no help came after the attack on the research base! They've thrown a shield around it!"

* * *

Ace was in her room, sitting on the edge of her bed and not minding at all that someone else was in it, beneath soft covers that belonged to her. She had helped Devon to take off his clothing and now he was resting, but not easily as he continued to sweat and suffer pains that shot through his bones.

"I don't know what to do to help you," she said to him, "How long will this last? Is there anything you can take for it?"

Devon drew in a slow breath as another wave of pain passed through him and then faded out. He looked into the eyes of the young woman who sat beside him and felt grateful for her company. She was looking at him so kindly, and she was so blissfully unaware of a truth he was not prepared to face up to, at least, not until he knew all hopes of a cure had been exhausted...

"The pain should ease off soon," he told her, "It won't last long, it's just an initial reaction to the exposure."

"So you're going to be okay?"

"Yes, of course I will," he replied, "I'm a scientist, I didn't go in there without protective clothing."

And every word he had spoken about protection had been a lie and he felt bad for lying to a sweet and beautiful woman who he knew he could easily fall in love with, and then he wondered how he could even think about falling in love at a time like this – but when _was_ the right time for anything to happen in life?

Ace smiled.

"You don't look like a Professor," she said, "You're too -"

"Young?" he wondered, and she laughed.

"Too good looking!"

And then he blushed.

"Thanks for that, Ace – but I don't feel too attractive at the moment!"

She looked into his eyes and as he didn't look away she caught a flicker of warmth there and she reached over and swept his damp hair off his face.

"You'll soon feel better," she promised him, and he wished it could be true.

"I'm sure I will," he replied quietly.

And Ace allowed her gaze to briefly wander over his firm body, but then he caught his breath as he fought another wave of pain and she took hold of his hand and grasped it tightly.

"Devon?" her voice raised slightly as panic took her over as she watched his face pale as he fought for air, then just as quickly the pain faded away, leaving him to slump back against his pillow as he slowly got his breath back.

"I'll be fine," he said quietly, "Don't worry about me."

Ace was still holding his hand.

"But I do," she said gently, and as she looked into his eyes her heart beat a little faster.

"_You saved the world. How cool is that! You're the bravest man on Earth."_

"Thank you, Ace," he replied quietly, and then he thought about the true cost of that bravery and fell silent as he waited, dreading the next wave of pain. As it overtook him he grabbed hard at her hand, and Ace gave a gasp as he crushed her hand in his grip.

As the pain faded away once more he let go.

"I'm sorry...I felt like my bones were melting. I need something for this...I don't know what can take for it, I don't know..."

He gave a frightened sob and as Ace put her arms around him, his body tensed and he gave another cry of pain.

Ace held him gently, waiting for the pain to pass and as his gaze came back into focus she spoke quietly to him.

"I'll get the Professor, he'll be able to help!"

And then she left the room, leaving him alone with pain that he feared more than he cared to admit.

* * *

As Ace ran into the console room, the Doctor was working on the console. He looked up at her and caught the look in her eyes and for a moment forget the problems of the shields.

"What's wrong, Ace?"

"It's Devon, he's in pain, really bad pain, I don't know what to do!"

"And the Cybermen have thrown a shield system around the whole area – must have happened after we landed, and it's stopping the Tardis from taking off," he said to her," We can't do anything to help him unless we can get out of here!"

"He's tried everything," Laura added as she stood beside the Doctor, "But the shields are sealing us in."

"But Professor, he's in agony!"

The Doctor glared at Ace.

"_There is nothing I can do, I have to crack their shield system, the combinations run into thousands! I may never crack it, do you understand me?"_

And then he saw hurt in her eyes and instantly regretted speaking so harshly.

"Yes," Ace said quietly as she blinked away tears, "But I just want to help Devon. You haven't seen what he's like, what the pain is like, its so hard to watch!"

And the Doctor thought again about the effects of the poisoning, and as he spoke again, his voice had softened.

"Let me break their code so we can get out of here. Then I can find him some proper help."

And then Laura spoke up.

"The facility has a sick bay. It's not very big but it's equipped for emergencies. I could go back see if I can find some pain killers."

The Doctor gave a heavy sigh as lights flashed on the control panel, indicating another code he had put in had just been rejected.

"Pain killers? No, Laura. He's experiencing chronic pain, he needs morphine for that."

"Morphine?" Ace exclaimed, "That's a bit much for a few minor burns."

The Doctor's eyes widened.

"_Minor?"_

"Yeah, he told me while I was helping him into bed, he had these red marks on his arm, he said it was minor burns, but they hurt a lot. He said the burns will fade in a few days."

"Yes, they will," the Doctor said quietly, recalling that the initial stage of the poisoning would indeed fade – as it sunk lower into his bones...

"Professor?"

Ace sounded worried.

"I was just thinking," he replied, "Morphine would be best if the pain is chronic."

And he turned to Laura.

"You know that building inside out – I have no concerns sending you back in – but be careful. That Cybership is still up there and they could send a patrol back down at any time, so be ready to run at the first sign of trouble. _Don't_ stand and fight, just run. Get back to the Tardis, have you got that?"

Laura nodded.

"Go now, " he told her, "And if they do send a patrol down, I may be able to trace the signal – that will put me halfway towards cracking through their shield's coding system. Be quick, Laura – we don't have much time."

"I'll be back soon," she promised, and she hurried out of the Tardis.

As the door closed behind her the Doctor turned to Ace and saw a look in her eyes that made his twin hearts ache, and gave him an awful sense of dread:

Ace was showing a great deal of concern for Devon, it went beyond her normal concern for an injured stranger. She was becoming fond of him, and he was dying – and there was nothing the Doctor could do to stop her heart from ultimately breaking – and that thought struck terror into his own hearts, because that was a pain he could _not_ protect her from...

"Please tell me we can help him," she said and she looked at him with such desperation in her eyes that he hated himself as he lied to her.

"Of course we can," he promised her, "We just need to solve this shield problem first."

And then she left the console room, returning to Devon's bedside, while the Doctor worked on the shield problem and tried and failed over and over to cut the Tardis loose from the Cyber ship's lock down.

* * *

Laura ran across the lawn and went up the steps, then into the main building.

By now the stink of the gas had left the air, and was slowly being replaced by the rising odour of dead bodies.

She stepped over the dead carefully, at the same time not looking too closely for fear of recognising familiar faces of colleagues as she made her way towards the lift. The doors were open and she stepped inside, and then the doors slid shut and the lift began to climb.

And a patrolling Cyberman entered the building and listened as the Cyber controller's metallic voice came through the communication device fixed to his arm:

"_Activate the test subjects."_

The Cyberman turned over a metal hand and held out a small device, then keyed in a sequence, and stood back to watch the effect.

The dead bodies on the floor began to stir, then rise slowly, staggering, eyes blank as they struggled to their feet, faces pale and movement jarring as the reanimated dead began to move about, stumbling against one another at first, and then looking around the room, searching for signs of the living humans whose blood they craved...

* * *

Devon was still sweating heavily. He was shaking as he clutched at the sheets and looked up at Ace with fear in his eyes.

"_I...can't take the pain...please help me!"_

Ace sat beside him once more and clasped his hand.

"Laura's gone back to get some morphine. She won't be long."

He struggled to hold back tears as he looked into her eyes.

"Morphine?"

"I know it sounds serious but the Doctor said it would be best for your pain.,"

Devon blinked away tears as he thought of the truth he had held back. Of _course_ he needed morphine, he was dying from that alien radiation...

But he still clung to the hope of a cure and as he looked into the eyes of Ace, he wondered what might be if he was cured, if there was a chance of happiness in the future – maybe, with Ace?

He_ had_ to hope for something...

"When I'm better," he said, "I'll take you to my house...it's a lovely place, a cottage... it's not far from here, I'd like you to see it, the summer's almost here and the garden is lovely in summer..."

Then he gripped her hand a little tighter as more pain shot through his body.

He drew in a sharp breath and continued:

"It's been in my family for three generations, beautiful place... would you like that, Ace? I'd love us to have dinner together...maybe you could stay for a few days?"

Ace smiled.

"I think that would be perfect," she replied, "I'd love to do that."

"I wish I'd met you under better circumstances," he said honestly, "I'd really like to get to know you, Ace."

"And you will!" she promised him, "Devon, I like you too – and you saved the world. That's pretty awesome!"

And Devon laughed weakly. His face was pale but the sparkle had come back into his eyes.

"I'm no one special, I'm just an ordinary man," he told her, "An ordinary man who was in difficult circumstances and had to make a decision."

"_As most heroes are," A_ce replied,_ "And you made the right choice. You stopped the count down."_

He smiled.

"So I'm awesome?"

She smiled too.

"Yes, you are," she said fondly, and for a moment their eyes locked and warmth passed between them, until another bolt of pain shot through his body and he grabbed at her hand, fighting for breath as he struggled to get through pain that was sinking deep into bone. Ace was talking softly to him as she stroked his hair, but he barely heard her as he sank back against the pillow, weakened by agony.

* * *

As the lift doors opened, Laura stepped out at the top floor and glanced left and right, saw no one and hurried down the corridor, following the signs that led to the sick bay. When she reached the door she found it locked, so she stood back and with a single blast of her laser pistol the lock was obliterated and the door swung open.

She went inside and started opening cabinets and drawers, but found no morphine.

Then she saw a large bag marked first aid kit, and grabbed it and set it down on a table. She unzipped the bag and looked inside and found dressings and creams and lotions and syringes, but again, no morphine.

"_Where is it?"_ she said aloud, and then as she turned her head, she caught sight of a locked glass cabinet.

She went over to it and then she saw glass vials clearly marked, and she tried to door, but the lock was firm.

Laura grabbed a chair from a nearby computer console, and turned her head away as the metal base connected with the glass. It shattered, sending shards across the lab floor.

Laura put the chair down and reached in, grabbing the morphine, then she placed it in the medical bag, zipped it shut and used the strap on the bag to carry it over her shoulder, leaving her hands free to reach for her gun if she needed it.

She left the lab and made her way back up the corridor. As she headed for the lift she slowed her pace.

A woman in a lab coat staggered towards the lift, then she stopped and slowly raised her head, her face framed by long fair hair.

"Hello?" Laura said quickly, "Are you all right? I'm security, are you hurt?"

She was running towards her.

"I said, are you hurt -"

And then Laura froze, staring in horror as the woman looked up, met her gaze with dead white eyes, and then opened a mouth that emitted a gush of black slime. From the back of her throat a low growl sounded, and she reached for her with curled, rigid fingers, taking shaky steps in her direction.

"_No way!"_ she exclaimed, and aimed the gun, sending a laser shot blasting out that slammed into the woman, who staggered back, then continued to walk towards her.

And then a clambering, clattering sound came from the stairway:

She turned her head to see more of them making their way up...

* * *

Laura ducked into a lab, shut the door and locked it and then kept her weapon trained, sweeping the room – but this one was empty...

"Now what?" she said aloud, as scratching began to sound from the other side of the locked door as the reanimated dead tried to claw through the wood.

Then she climbed up on to a work surface and opened the window.

Looking down, it was a short jump to the flat roof below...

She scrambled out of the window and jumped, landing safely on the roof.

Then she ran, took a jump passing a narrow gap she didn't want to think about that she could have easily slipped through, and landed on the next roof.

She paused to catch her breath, looking down and seeing the dead staggering out of the building. Then she looked over at the Tardis, a short distance away across the other side of the wide lawn.

Laura didn't think, because she knew if she did she would fall and those _things_...no, she didn't want to think about those _things,_ either...

Instead she scrambled from the roof, did not look down and began to climb, guttering, window ledges, more guttering, slipping and then holding on and continuing the climb, thinking only of reaching the ground.

As she passed the first floor she lowered herself, then grabbed the pipe and slid, landing heavily with a jolt that jarred her bones, but she jumped up as the dead began to round the corner, and ran away from the building, making a dash for the Tardis.

Something large and silver caught her eye as she ran, there was a Cyberman standing guard but she had passed him now...

Laura didn't look back as the Doctor's words burned bright in her mind:

_Do not stand and fight, just run!_

* * *

She crossed the lawn and reached the Tardis and hammered on the door.

It opened and she dashed inside, and the Doctor, who was still working on the console with his back to the viewing screen, reached for a switch, and the Tardis doors closed again.

"Did you get the morphine?" he asked, still concentrating on his attempt to break through the Cyber ship's shield system.

"Yeah...I did..." Laura was breathless.

He turned and looked at her.

"What happened?"

"I think I saw a Cyberman -"

"I picked up nothing on the radar – but that would make sense if they only sent down one to monitor the immediate area -"

"_Doctor..."_

The Doctor's hat was off and perched on the hat stand, and his umbrella was hung beside it. He paused to run his fingers through dark hair and then he scratched his head.

"Yes...I suppose my systems wouldn't pick up _one_ Cyberman - that would be a drop in the ocean compared to the vast power they've got going to keep this shield in place...perhaps if they'd sent through a whole unit I may have detected it -"

"_Doctor!"_

He caught a look of fear in her eyes.

"What is it, Laura?"

She drew in a deep breath and pointed to the screen.

"The Cybermen... I don't know how they did it, but those dead people, those people they killed...are walking around again, they're dead and they're walking around and they were trying to hunt me down like prey!"

The Doctor turned to the screen, and his eyes widened in shock to see the reanimated corpses staggering about the grounds of the research facility.

He was still staring in horror at the sight of it as she spoke again:

"_They're all dead, Doctor – but the Cybermen brought them back, they've brought the dead back to life!"_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

As the dead began to stagger across the lawn, the Doctor was still staring at the screen in disbelief as he reached down to the console, hit a button to lock the doors and then activated another button to cloak the Tardis.

"We should be safe for a while," he said as he continued to watch the screen.

"How long is a while?" Laura asked in a hushed voice.

"Around forty-eight hours, that's how long I can keep the Tardis invisible... that's all I can do unless I can break through the Cybermen's shield system and get us out of here."

And then he activated a switch and the screen closed, blocking off the sight of the reanimated dead, and he turned and looked at Laura.

"I'll continue to work on the code. Did you get the morphine for Devon?"

She nodded.

"It's in this bag – along with a lot of other stuff – but I don't know how to give an injection."

The Doctor gave a heavy sigh.

"I'll do it," he told her.

He took the medical bag from Laura and turned towards the doorway that led out of the console room. And then he stopped, seeing Ace standing there. She looked at him with tears in her eyes as she struggled to hold back from losing her composure.

"I saw it," she said, "Just before you closed the screen – I saw them – what the Cybermen did – those people are dead! Why would they do something like this?"

The Doctor shook his head.

"I can only imagine they are using the victims for some kind of tissue research, they always looking for new ways to preserve the human parts they still retain within their robotic bodies."

Ace looked pale and shocked.

"How could they do this to dead people?"

"I know," he replied, "It is unthinkable – but the Cybermen don't, Ace."

"What?" she asked.

"Think," he replied, "At least, not like we do – their thoughts are devoid of all emotion, they would not even consider what disrespecting the dead would mean to us, to them the bodies are simply test subjects, items to be used in an experiment."

And then he indicated to the medical bag.

"Laura got the morphine. I'm going to inject Devon with a low dose to begin with and see how he responds. This phase of the radiation exposure won't last long."

And then he fell silent, omitting the fact that there would be a short period of time when the pain faded out, before it returned, and the severity of his condition would become clear...

"Thanks, Professor," Ace said gratefully, "He just wants to feel better."

"I'm sure he does," he replied quietly, and then he led the way to the room where Devon was resting.

* * *

Ace watched anxiously as Devon lay there breathing heavily as sweat ran down his face.

The Doctor drew the morphine from the vial and injected him easily, and Devon barely noticed the sting of the needle as pain continued to run through his body. And then he opened his eyes and slowly looked up, blinking as blurred vision came back into focus and saw the Doctor and Laura standing beside him.

"Where's Ace?" he asked weakly.

"I'm here," she said, and he turned his head to see her standing at the other side of his bed. His face was deathly pale and his dark hair was soaked with sweat but he smiled and his eyes sparkled as he saw her beside him.

"Stay with me, I'll feel so much better with you to keep me company."

"Of course I will," she said warmly, and she sat on the edge of the bed and took hold of his hand. Their eyes met and he breathed a relieved sigh as the morphine began to fade out the worst of the pain.

And the Doctor looked away, not wanting to think about the look he had just seen pass between Ace and Devon, because Ace was yet to learn she was falling in love with a man who had very little time to live...

Devon fought against the drowsiness that was sweeping over him as he turned and looked to the Doctor.

"Are we leaving soon? I need to get out of here -"

"Soon," the Doctor replied kindly, "We have a problem breaking through the Cybermen's shield system – they've locked down the entire area – but I _will_ find a way to break through it. You rest, and leave the worry to me."

Ace looked at him sharply.

"But what about the -"

"I said, leave it to me," He repeated, and she nodded and fell silent, understanding that Devon did _not _need the added stress of knowing the Cybermen had turned the dead against the living beyond the safety of the Tardis walls...

"I'm going back to the console room," the Doctor said, and he left the room, and Laura followed.

Ace looked down at Devon, who was starting to relax and breathe easier as the morphine took effect.

It's going to be okay," she said to him, "Don't worry..."

And her grip tightened on his hand as he slipped into a deep sleep, and then she looked towards the door and thought of the Doctor and desperately hoped he would get through the shield, and soon, because she was starting to feel trapped here, and even though Devon seemed to be out of pain, she knew she could not relax until they had left danger far behind them...

* * *

Laura watched as the Doctor's hand flew across controls and he tried again to crack the code.

"What's going to happen if we can't get out of here?"

The Doctor stopped working and looked up from the console, his eyes darkened and his voice lowered as he gave his reply.

"The Tardis can't sustain invisibility forever. Nor can we remain beneath the shield – the Cybermen will pick up the Tardis signal and if they do that, they will capture the ship and us."

And as he saw a look of fear in her eyes, he placed his hand over hers as she rested it on the edge of the console.

"But I _will_ get us out of here. Please have faith in me."

Laura looked into his eyes and he suddenly felt caught, not wanting to look away.

"I do have faith in you," she said, "I believe you. Ace trusts you totally, I can see that. I've no reason to doubt you."

"But you're scared."

Laura nodded.

The Doctor stepped closer.

"Don't be," he told her softly, and he put his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

As he drew back and she caught the scent of cologne on more than human skin, she looked into eyes that seemed to reflect something older than time and then he let go of her again.

"I see a great deal in you that reminds me of Ace," he said quietly, "I don't know why – I think its your spirit, your inner strength."

Laura briefly cast aside her fears and forgot about the situation they found themselves trapped in as she asked him a question.

"Do you want to hold her the way you just held me?"

And the Doctor quickly loosened his paisley tie and looked back down at the console.

"I don't know," he replied as he turned his attention back to the problem at hand, "But I wanted to reassure you, Laura."

And he glanced at her and again their eyes locked, and the Doctor looked away again.

"You should get some rest," he told her, Leave me to work...this could take some time."

And as she left the console room, he paused for a moment, thinking about the situation they were trapped in, and trying _not_ to think about the reason why he had held her:

_Yes, she did remind him of Ace, but that was not why he had held her. _

_He had seen fear in her eyes, and desperately wanted to banish it, as he had put his arms around her and wished they had met under better circumstances..._

Then he thought of Ace and wondered if she felt the same way about Devon.

Love was something that could never be expected or planned for.

And it pained him deeply to think she would lose him so soon after finding him – and then he wondered why Ace McShane was settled so deeply into his twin hearts.

He wanted to let go of that, before it took hold in a way that made him aware of – _No, he wasn't going to dwell on it. Nor was going to dwell on Laura, not when he had work to do._

He pushed all other thoughts from his mind and set to work on cracking the code once more.

And as he worked, his thoughts slipped back to Laura, and to her mention of Ace and those feelings he kept buried so deep he really didn't want to disturb them...

Of course he cared about her, but how deeply and why were questions that would take a great deal of time and thought to answer, he knew he probably already had the answer, but he didn't want to acknowledge it.

He had become very fond of Ace McShane in the years they had travelled together.

And he kept it all wrapped up split between two hearts within his chest that held more secrets than he cared to think about.

Perhaps he _did_ love her.

But Ace was so bound to their friendship he was sure if he tried to cross that line, it would have been altered beyond all recognition – and all for something that would perhaps not last.

_Maybe._

_He was listening to his own doubts and he knew it._

But he didn't feel those doubts when he looked at Laura, perhaps because she was not Ace, and had not shared his life the way his companion had. She was yet to see his darker side, and he had no secrets to hide from her, other than the fact that Devon was dying – but it was not his place to tell anyone about that, it was up to Devon...

He knew Ace would not understand how he could keep this knowledge from her, and he hoped it would not be long before Devon explained, because the longer he waited, the harder the truth would be to accept when Ace found out.

It seemed as if everything had a layer of deceit draped across it, and he wished he could tear it aside and -

_And then he got it._

"Of course!" he exclaimed, and he began to input a new code.

As the result came up on the screen he smiled, and quickly added a second sequence.

Then he tried the take off sequence again, and as the Tardis made its familiar sound, it lifted with ease, passing through the barrier and re materialising above Earth, at a distance from the Cyber ship.

The Doctor opened up the viewing port, saw the ship far off in the distance and reactivated the cloaking device. He knew he could not hide forever, but had no intention of doing so, not now he had escaped the shield system – now, he had to find a way to deactivate the reanimated dead, and he set to work right away, sending out a low frequency scan to sweep the Cyber vessel for a power surge being directed towards Earth.

He watched the scanner, tapping his fingers on the console as he waited. He knew it could take time – or not – but waiting was hard, because he wanted the crisis on Earth to be stopped immediately...

* * *

"_Professor?"_

The Doctor had been watching the scanner for more than half an hour.

He glanced up, saw Ace walk into the room and looked back down at the screen.

"How is he?"

"Resting, I think he's going to be okay."

And that ache in the Doctor's twin hearts increased tenfold, but he remained silent about the truth.

"That's good to know," he replied.

Ace joined him at the console.

"I heard us take off. So it's over now, right? We can get out of here now?"

The Doctor looked to Ace and then the viewing screen.

"I'm afraid not," he said, and as she took in the sight of the distant Cybership, the optimism faded from her eyes.

"I tried a double code – a standard shield command with a Cyber tech code laid over the top of it, and I managed to break through it and take us out of their forcefield, but there's more, I'm afraid."

"Now what?"

"Now I have to find a way to stop the signal, or the power surge, or whatever it is they have created to reanimate the dead. And then I shall put a call through to UNIT to inform them of the incident. They'll have to cover this up, we don't know what they exposed those bodies to, they must have had some kind of activator in the gas they used to kill them in the first place. This is dangerous, Ace – if technology like that fell into the wrong hands on Earth, the results don't bear thinking about."

Ace stared at him.

"Cover it up? How would UNIT do that?"

The Doctor paused, wishing he could spare her the details, but he guessed he was hiding enough from her already, and so he spelled out the truth:

"An unknown substance capable of reanimating the dead is simply too dangerous to preserve in any shape or form. They will arrange a cover up, an official story to bury the truth once and for all, most likely by taking the bodies back into the research base and burning the place to the ground and blaming the fire on an industrial accident."

Her eyes were still wide.

"They would do that?"

"There's no other way," the Doctor replied, "Once I cut that power surge and the dead stay dead, that place and the bodies used in the Cybermen's experiments have to be burned to ash. UNIT can't cover up everything, though – the Government will want to ensure there are no witnesses to the true set of events. _Therefore, I can't tell UNIT about the survivors. And they can never go home again._"

He caught a flicker of shock in her eyes, and then it was gone.

"So Devon can't ever go back? Or Laura?"

"It's the only way to keep them safe," he replied, "It's a big universe out there – I'm sure we can find them a new home."

She had fallen silent.

"Ace?"

He glanced down at the screen, saw nothing on the scanner and looked back at her.

"What is it?"

"I don't want to leave Devon on some strange alien planet, he's not expecting any of this to happen! He's got a cottage in the country, he want me to go there with him and..."

Ace fell silent as she realised the Doctor was right, it would never happen.

"The Cybermen have created a terrible weapon," he reminded her, "And while UNIT will clean up the mess, it will be down to your Government to do the rest. They won't want two survivors left behind who could tell their stories to the press and cause widespread panic. It's the Government who would see to it they never got the chance to do that."

"So they've got no choice? They really can't go back?"

"No," the Doctor replied, "But I'm sure I can find a distant future Earth colony where they can settle."

Ace frowned.

"They need to know."

The Doctor was in complete agreement, the guilt of his own secret regarding Devon was weighing far too heavily to add more deceit on top of it.

"It might be best coming from you," he said as he turned back to the console, "I still have a crisis to end."

"Okay," Ace replied quietly, and she left the console room.

* * *

Ace found Laura in the Tardis library.

She was sitting on a sofa beside a high, wide book case as she looked into the flames that burned warmly in the fireplace, and as as Ace approached her she looked up.

"How's Devon?"

"Sleeping peacefully. I think the morphine did the trick – he's definitely not in pain any more."

"Good. Has the Doctor cracked the code yet?"

Ace nodded.

"Of course he has. He broke us out of the force field and now we're up in space, and the Tardis is cloaked so the Cyber ship can't see us. He's figuring out how to kill the power that's causing the dead to be zombified. Then he's going to call UNIT to tell them what's happened and then, when it's over, we can leave."

And Ace sat down on the sofa beside her.

"Then me and Devon can go back to Earth?" she said hopefully.

And Ace shook her head.

Laura stared at her.

"Why not?"

"Because what happened at the base has to be covered up. What the Cybermen have done is so dangerous _everything_ has to be destroyed to make sure that kind of technology _never _falls into the wrong hands. It's something even UNIT doesn't want to hold on to in their vaults."

Laura had already guessed the rest.

"And they won't allow any survivors? I thought UNIT were supposed to defend us, not harm us."

"Not UNIT," Ace replied, "It goes higher – the Government. They won't want anyone left behind who can tell the story of what really happened. So you and Devon can't go back, it's for your own safety. I'm sorry, but you can never go home to Earth again."

Laura drew in a slow breath and slowly nodded.

"Well I guess it's better than becoming another statistic when – how _are_ they going to cover it up?"

"The Professor said it would most likely be a fire that leaves nothing behind but ash."

Laura took another deep breath, letting the news sink in slowly as she considered the alternative.

"So I'll be listed as presumed dead any way."

"And so will Devon."

"He needs to know," Laura said to her.

"I'll tell him when he wakes up," Ace replied, "He's sleeping deeply at the moment. At least he's not in pain any more."

Then they both fell silent as they sat side by side in the library as the fire continued to burn warmly. It was Laura who finally broke the silence after several moments spent deep in thought.

"Maybe I could stay on," she said, "Travel with you and the Doctor...I think I'd like to see a bit of the universe."

"Sounds good to me," Ace told her, and then she smiled, deciding she rather liked the idea of another travelling companion joining the Tardis.

* * *

The Doctor finally spotted the energy trace an hour later.

He locked on to the co ordinates and hoped his plan would work – the Tardis would need to use a great deal of power to pull back that beam and shatter it, rendering the Cyber ship wounded and leaving the Cybermen no choice but to turn back and retreat. It had occurred to him that if he upped the power from his own ship he could easily have sent the energy surge back upwards, exploding the Cyber vessel – but he had no intention of killing any living thing unless it could be avoided, and that decision included _all_ forms of life, even the Cybermen...

His plan was enough for them to be convinced their experiment had failed, and force the ship to leave, limping away on minimal power.

But for the short amount of time it would take to shatter the beam, the shields would be down and the cloaking system deactivated – there was a risk the Cybermen would spot the Tardis, but he could see no other way to end this situation...

He looked to the screen as he shut down shields and locked on to the beam.

There was a shudder as the Tardis power systems were pushed to the limit and the two power lines met, the Tardis stream slicing into the surge from the Cyber ship, shattering the beam in a flash that lit up space and then faded out rapidly.

"Come on..." he whispered under his breath as he watched the large silver vessel set against the darkness of space.

And then a glow began to shine from the back of the ship, there was a brief, small explosion and some debris floated free. The Doctor knew at once the Cybermen's experiment was over, the reanimated dead would have fallen to the ground lifeless once more as soon as the power line was cut.

The Cybership began to turn around, and then it headed away from Earth at half speed, the ship damaged from the shattering of the power surge.

And the Doctor breathed a deep sigh of relief.

"Now..." he murmured as he opened a communications channel to Earth, "Time to speak to UNIT..."

* * *

"_Devon."_

He slowly opened his eyes, saw Ace sitting on the bed and he smiled as he realised she was holding on to his hand.

"Ace..." he sounded tired and his mind was foggy from morphine and sleep, but he felt no trace of pain.

"The crisis is over," she told him, "The Doctor broke through the shield, explained everything to Earth and UNIT are on their way to the scene."

"Thank goodness for that! So what's happening next? I asked him if he could take me somewhere that can treat my burns."

Ace looked down at his arm. The red marks on his arm were fading.

"Looks like you're healing!" she replied in surprise.

"Yes, I suppose I am," he replied quietly, recalling all he knew about the alien radiation, and remembering that the outward signs would soon be gone. And there would be a few precious days where life would return to normal before the true effects of the radiation became obvious...

And then Ace tightened her grip on his hand.

"Devon," she said gently, "He told me something else and you need to hear this."

And as he met her gaze he thought of this new connection, the closeness he had found with Ace, and as he wondered if the Doctor had told her the truth about his condition, he was gripped with a sense of absolute terror – if Ace knew, everything would change. He would lose her, lose what ever he had with her that kept her held so warmly and firmly in his heart – it would all change, and he could not bear to allow that to happen...

"What did he say?" he said in a hushed voice.

"That once UNIT clear up the mess left behind by the Cybermen, the Government won't allow any survivors, they'd be too scared you might talk. Because of that, you and Laura can never return to Earth."

He stared at her as the news sank in.

"Never? But I wanted to go home before -"

"Before what?"

He saw a brief look of confusion in her eyes, and quickly covered up the fact that he had almost said too much.

"I wanted to show you the cottage before you and the Doctor went on your way."

Ace shook her head.

"No," she told him sadly, "I'm sorry, Devon – you can't go back. But the Doctor said he's going to try and find an Earth colony planet where you and Laura will both be able to feel at home. Please trust him, he knows what he's doing. He's just keeping you both safe."

Devon fell silent for a moment, and then he gave her hand a squeeze.

"Oh well," he said, "At least I get to spend more time with you," and then he smiled, and so did Ace.

"And when you're better," she said, "Who knows what could happen? I might even stay on for a while, that way we can spend some time together."

"I'd like that," Devon replied, and he kept hold of her hand and watched as her eyes sparkled hopefully, as he tried not to think about the painful truth.

* * *

Laura walked into the console room to see the Doctor programming a flight course.

"Where are we going?" she asked him.

The Doctor finished working on the console and looked up from it and smiled.

"Stetera 3, it's an Earth colony planet, and they will also be able to treat Devon's poisoning."

"I thought he was okay?"

"Well he's going to need some treatment for the radiation exposure," the Doctor replied, choosing his words carefully as he remained firm in his decision that it was _not_ his place to explain the truth to anyone – that had to be Devon's choice alone...

"Will you be staying around when we land?" Laura asked, and as he looked into her eyes his hearts flooded with warmth and he started to smile.

"I do believe I'd rather like to do that," he replied, "Yes, Laura – I shall be staying around for while."

And she smiled too, and for a brief time he forgot about Ace and her love for a man who had no hope of survival, as he considered a stay on the planet and time to get to know Laura, and that thought was a bright and hopeful respite from the pain that surrounded his companion's situation as the Tardis set off on a course towards the earth colony planet, far away in space and time.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Ace went up to the door that led to her room and opened it quietly.

Many hours had passed since they had left Earth, the Doctor had taken a slow journey to give Devon time to rest, and as she entered the room she wondered if he was still sleeping. They were soon to reach their destination, and she felt bad about waking him if he was still recovering...

_But the bed was empty._

Ace looked around the room.

"Devon?" she said nervously, as the sudden thought grabbed her that perhaps he had wandered out of the room while she had been resting in another, and for a brief moment she felt angry with herself for leaving his side and selfish for putting her own need for rest first when he was so unwell.

And then the bathroom door opened.

Ace stood there staring in disbelief at the sight of Devon, looking fully recovered and dressed in a dark blue suit with silk lapels embroidered with Gallifreyan swirls. His leather shoes were polished to a high shine and beneath his open jacket he wore a white shirt open at the neck and patterned with dark spirals. His hair was combed and he bore no trace of the pain he suffered.

As he looked at her he smiled.

"Hello Ace!" he said brightly, "I really must thank the Doctor for leaving me these clothes – exactly my kind taste, too, I wonder how he knew -"

"It was the Tardis," Ace told him, "This ship has given me clothes too."

He blinked.

"This _ship_ did that for me?"

Ace smiled.

"Well your own suit was ruined and I'm pretty sure the Tardis knows you saved the world. Probably her way of thanking you."

"_Her?"_

"The Doctor calls the Tardis a her."

He pushed up his sleeve and showed her a gold watch with a leather strap, its face decorated with jewelled Roman numerals.

"She gave me a very expensive watch, too!"

"Wicked!" Ace exclaimed.

And then she looked intently at Devon.

"You're really better?"

"I certainly feel better," he told her, "I woke up and the pain was gone, so were the burns."

And she smiled and he saw relief in her eyes and felt guilty for holding back the truth, but then he pushed his guilt aside, feeling thankful to be free of pain, feeling well and in the company of Ace McShane. Yes, he _would_ tell her eventually – but not yet, not while he still had precious time to enjoy life, even if it would only be a few short days before the true extent of the poisoning became obvious.

"The Professor said you might need treatment for the radiation," Ace reminded him, "But I'm not so sure that you do, I mean, it wasn't like earth radiation, it was more like -"

"Alien radiation and yes Ace, it certainly _did_ affect me in a very different way to ordinary radioactive poisoning. And I'm feeling well now, but I probably should have some treatment to be sure I'm in control of it, I mean, it's still radiation, it can be serious."

And that was the closest he had got to the truth since he had first met her. But then he saw a flicker of worry in her eyes, and he quickly laughed it off.

"Don't worry about me, do I look ill?"

Ace shook her head.

"Not any more."

He smiled and took hold of her hand.

"Then let's get out of here, Ace! When is the Tardis landing? I can't wait to discover an alien world, it sounds _so_ exciting!"

And then he led her out into the corridor and they walked towards the console room as Devon continued to talk of his excitement at the thought of landing on another planet, and Ace recalled again how unwell he had been, and hoped his recovery would last, because it had been so sudden and she was still stunned by the sheer speed of it...

* * *

The Doctor had been checking the controls as he keyed in a landing sequence.

Then Ace and Devon walked into the room and he stared at Devon in surprise:

I_t certainly was true the poisoning was yet to become obvious, the initial exposure had worn off and now he looked deceptively well and by the look of relief on her face, Ace was yet to learn the truth..._

"Morning Doctor!" Devon said brightly, "Thanks ever so much for finding me and Laura a new planet to live on – where is Laura this morning?"

"She will be along in a minute," the Doctor said, "I woke her twenty minutes ago... you humans do sleep a lot when first introduced to space travel!"

"I'm not surprised I did," Devon replied, and the Doctor met his gaze, briefly smiled but then the look in his eyes hardened.

"You need to start making some plans, Professor Travis."

And Devon avoided his gaze as he looked down at the polished console floor, then he ran his fingers through his hair and looked back at him, forcing a smile.

"No rush," he replied, "I'm feeling well, I can afford to wait a few days before I seek treatment. It's going to have the same outcome no matter when I do it any way – so what's the fuss about?"

"_Ace."_

Devon stared at him, fearing the Doctor was about to reveal the truth, and the Doctor saw fear in his eyes as Ace glanced at him, and said, "What, Professor?"

Devon was holding his breath.

The Doctor shrugged.

"Nothing important...I just wondered if you could go and tell Laura to hurry up, we're about to land."

"Sure," Ace replied, and she left the console room, and at last Devon could breathe again.

* * *

"_I get your point, Doctor!"_ he snapped, glaring at him now they were alone in the console room. Devon was breaking out in a light sweat that had nothing to do with his health and everything to do with how close the Doctor had come to revealing the truth – or at least, making him aware of how easy it would be...

The Doctor threw a switch and with a wheeze and a groan the Police Box left the darkness of space, reappearing on the planet of Stetera 3. The view from the port showed green fields and buildings dotted about close by, some tall, some smaller, but all with white walls and windows gleaming in the bright morning sunshine, and beyond that, where the road opened up wide, passing through more fields, the sea rolled to a golden shore, white foam chased in and out from land tugged on waves that rolled as deep blue water.

But neither men who stood in the console room cared to pause and admire the view, their eyes had locked and as they stood facing each other, the Doctor could sense a rising hostility from Devon, born purely out of the desperate need to cling to normality while he still could.

The Doctor stepped closer, looking up at Devon, who was much taller than him, but as his gaze did not waver, determination burned in his eyes.

"You _have _to tell her the truth, Devon. I can see how Ace feels about you, it's there in her eyes and you know it!"

And Devon felt slightly bewildered that the friendly little man in the question mark jumper who had taken him away from the threat that remained on Earth could suddenly appear so hostile. There was darkness in his eyes and his voice had lowered as he held him in a gaze that was impossible to break away from, as if he could see into his soul.

"I know you're scared," the Doctor said, "And I know you're aware your time is most likely running out. But she needs to know!"

"Why are you trying to protect her?"

"Because I care! Because she's been a friend for a long time and I won't stand back and see her heart broken when the truth could easily soften that blow when the time comes!"

There was a brief flash of panic in his eyes, and then Devon replied, keeping his voice low in case Ace walked back in to the room unexpectedly.

"I _will _tell her! I just don't want to do it yet, not while the poison is in the dormant phase! Please Doctor, put yourself in my position for a moment – if you knew the end was coming, what would _you_ do? Tell her right away, or wait until you had to? Why cause her sadness before she has to know anything about it? I realise there may not be a cure for me, but I want to make the most of the time I have left. Perhaps the radiation won't kill me for a very long time, perhaps -"

" Xaygrolium radiation sickness is incurable!" the Doctor said sharply, "Exposure to small amounts can be treated with a life expectancy of around five years. But you absorbed much more than that, Devon. At the most you could hope for five or six months – with treatment – that's if you respond to treatment. You need to face facts, there are no miracles."

He drew in a slow breath and looked sadly at the Doctor.

"But I can allow myself to hope. I have to, because hope is all I have left, Doctor. And I wasn't planning to meet Ace or to like her so much, to warm to her – but why should I push her away now, when time is running out?"

The Doctor considered his words carefully.

"I am Time Lord, capable of regeneration – when I die, I regenerate into a new body. I have died many times. But with each death I know I will live again. I'm also aware that you have _one_ life, and one death, too – and I don't want to stop you being close to Ace, I just want her to hear the truth, from you, before you become closer to her and she starts hoping for a future that she can't have. I never want to see her hopes and dreams shattered when it can be avoided by necessary explanation to enable her to prepare for the moment."

And pain reflected in Devon's eyes.

"_Please, " _he said quietly, _"Not yet."_

And then Ace returned with Laura, and she smiled brightly at the Doctor, and his twin hearts ached as he wished Devon would tell the girl the truth before it was too late.

"Shall we go, then?" she said, and then she looked out the viewing port.

"Oh wicked! This place looks lovely! I can't wait to explore!"

"I think we should explore right away!" Devon said, and Ace took hold of his hand and smiled again, and the Doctor wanted to weep for all the things she didn't know.

"Why not," he replied, taking his umbrella from the hat stand beside the console, "I think you're going to like this planet, Ace."

And the Doctor opened the door and stepped outside, and the others followed, breathing in the fresh air and taking in the blue skies and the landscape of the planet for the first time.

* * *

As they walked away from the Tardis towards a road that led towards the nearby buildings, Ace looked around and smiled as she saw the green fields and the trees and the wild flowers growing at the roadside.

"This place is lovely!" she exclaimed, "And I've got a good feeling about it - no trouble here, eh, Professor?"

"No trouble," he replied, and turned his head as he walked, taking in the view of a field as he tried not to think about the trouble that certainly _was_ brewing due to Devon's reluctance to face up to the truth and share it with Ace.

Then the Doctor quickened his pace, walking ahead of Laura, who was looking around fascinated at the thought that this planet was not Earth, and as he walked he was also putting a distance between himself and Ace and Devon, who were holding hands and talking softly as they walked together.

He felt thankful his companions were happy to enjoy the view of the beautiful, unpolluted, unspoiled planet, because he really didn't want to talk to anyone at that moment because he could not share his thoughts:

_He had no right to tell Ace Devon's secret, even though it felt like the right thing to do._

_And it pained him greatly on so many levels as he thought about the harsh reality that was about to creep up on Professor Travis – the man had saved the world, and it would ultimately cost him his own life, and there was nothing that could be done to alter that fact. He wondered how Devon would feel about his heroic act when he lay dying from the alien radiation._

Then he wondered how Ace would react when she learned the truth, and then a worse thought hit him:

_Ace would see this as a betrayal._

_She would never, ever forgive him for hiding a secret of this magnitude no matter how he tried to explain his reasons for doing so..._

Those thoughts weighed heavy in his hearts as they made their way towards the buildings that were now closer, and somewhere behind him he heard the soft voices of Ace and Devon, talking sweetly as only those in love could, and Ace laughed, but he did not look back for fear she would catch the look in his eyes and spy a glimpse of the truth...

* * *

As they reached town, they crossed a small bridge that stretched over a fast running stream and the Doctor paused, looking around and seeing two roads – one led off into the suburbs, the other led into the heart of town. The roads were quiet, and remained so as traffic passed them, small cars with silent engines that emitted no exhaust fumes.

The Doctor pointed towards town with the tip of his umbrella.

"This way, " he said, and took the lead once more.

"Professor?"

"What is it, Ace?" he called back, not caring to look around and see her in a moment of happiness with Devon, happiness that would shatter like a piece of china far sooner than he cared to think about...

"Are there any aliens here?" Ace asked him.

"No," he replied, "This is an Earth colonised planet, and this may look like a small town to you, but it is in fact the largest city on the entire planet – its got a lot of open space and the population is quite low in comparison to many other planets. It's only been a colony for five hundred years, and that's counting from when the first researchers set up here – the colonisation came later, so the population is yet to boom. It's a nice, quiet place. And they have excellent beaches and restaurants, there are hotels at the edge of town near the coast – and there is a large medical centre here in the heart of the town, I was hoping Devon -"

"_Not right now, Doctor."_

He stopped walking and turned back, fixing Devon with a look that held back much of the anger he wished he could show.

"Not yet?"

"I feel fine!" Devon said as he stood beside Ace holding her hand, "And we've only just got here. I want to find a nice hotel with a sea view and enjoy myself. I can't think of a better way to get to know this planet."

"Sounds a good idea to me too," Laura agreed.

The Doctor gave a sigh.

"Then that's what we we will do," he said, and turned back to the road and carried on walking. Laura was still fascinated by her new surroundings, and lagging behind a little. He could still hear softly spoken words exchanged between Ace and Devon as they walked hand in hand, and the Doctor fixed his hardened gaze on the road ahead and said nothing more as he led the way towards the road that led to the coast, where salt was in the air and the cliff side was dotted with hotels and guest houses.

* * *

When they had walked to a large, white house that was clearly a replica of old Victorian style, the Doctor paused at a white painted gate.

Beyond it a garden was filled with flowers – Earth flowers and Earth plants, even the trees had come from Earth.

"I'll arrange our rooms," he said.

"_I want a sea view." _

The Doctor looked back at Devon.

"I'm assuming most rooms have one, Professor Travis, the place _does_ look out to sea!"

Then he went through the gate and up the path and rang the old fashioned doorbell.

Laura waited beside the Doctor and as the door opened, he smiled, raising his hat as he spoke to the young woman who owned the guest house. He spoke to her briefly and then went inside, and Laura followed, while Ace and Devon stood outside in the garden.

* * *

"I thought I was going to miss Earth," Devon said as he led Ace over to the shade of an oak tree that grew tall with branches spread wide, and they sat down on a bench beside a fish pond.

Ace looked into the water and smiled as she spotted a familiar sight that reminded her of home.

"Goldfish!"

"I think everything was brought to this place from Earth," he said, "That's how it looks to me."

And then he paused, looked down at her hand clasped in his grip and gently ran his fingers across the back of her hand.

"I expect you will be leaving with the Doctor soon."

And she saw something reflected in his eyes, it was there for a moment and then gone – pain?

"I don't have to go yet," she said, "The Professor said we can stay for a little while. I think he needs a break like this as much as I do...some of the places I've been, the danger I've experienced – you wouldn't believe what it can be like, travelling with him!"

And then his smile faded.

"What's the matter? You look so sad."

He shook his head and then let go of her hand.

"It's nothing, I was just thinking about how I'll miss you, and it's not fair to say that because you have your life the way you want it, you like to be free and travel and it wouldn't be right for me to ask you to stay, at least, not for too long – you'd miss the Doctor and your travels too much."

"_No I wouldn't."_

Ace had surprised herself with how fast she had made that statement, and with no need for time to think about it.

Devon looked at her in surprise.

"You wouldn't miss your life in the Tardis?"

"I would, but I think I'd miss you even more."

Now her face was flushing and she felt awkward; it was not every day she fell so quickly and heavily and while she had no regrets about her decision to follow her heart, it still surprised her that she could be so open, so quickly, with someone she barely knew.

But as she looked into his eyes she felt as if she had known him for a lifetime, and she started to smile.

"Sometimes," she said, "When I'm going to strange, far away places, I'm excited. Other times it can be just plain scary. I've seen beautiful sunsets and amazing animals and exotic aliens and all kinds of wonders."

And then the light in her eyes faded as her voice dropped lower.

"But I've also seen horrible things, evil alien races hell bent on destruction, I've fought battles and I've seen people die. What happened back on Earth at the lab, all those people dead on the floor, killed by the Cybermen? That's just another day for me. Sometimes, it really _does_ get that bad."

"But not here," Devon replied, "Not on this beautiful planet that looks like Earth. I'm glad I ended up here."

And then he laughed softly as he thought of the irony of that statement.

"I'm not sure how long I'll appreciate it, but I am thankful to be here. I didn't expect to be spending the rest of my life in the far-off future on an alien planet when I left for work on the day the Cybermen attacked."

And as his smile faded she saw sorrow in his eyes again.

"What did you mean?" she asked him, and a sea breeze shifted through the garden blowing her long hair back in honey brown tendrils that danced in the wind.

Devon reached out and brushed her hair off her shoulder, and then placed his hand against her cheek as he looked into her eyes.

"I need to talk to you about a lot of things," he said gently, "But...not now, not yet. I just want to be happy, is that selfish of me?"

And compassion filled her eyes as she guessed he had to be talking about how he could never return to earth again.

"I'd be sad too if I could never go home," she said to him, but he had not answered her question and it was starting to nag at her.

"What did you mean? You didn't answer me, I wanted to know why you said it."

"Said what?"

"About being here, that you didn't know how long you would appreciate it. I'm not sure I understand."

He looked into her eyes.

"Devon?" she said, searching for the truth as he hesitated.

"It doesn't matter," he told her, "Forget about it, I've been through a lot, I'm tired... I just want to enjoy being here on this lovely planet, with you. That's all I'm thinking about now."

"You're thinking about _me_?"

"I couldn't stop if I tried," he whispered, and he pulled her closer and their lips touched.

As they sat beneath the shade of the tree and she returned his kisses, Ace clung to him tightly as a feeling swept over her that she had been aware of before, but had tried not to think too deeply about – she wanted to be with this man. She wanted it more than anything she had ever wanted, she never wanted to let him go...

* * *

The Doctor had booked the rooms and then thanked the woman who handed him a set of keys, and he went up the stairs with Laura to the second floor, counted door numbers and went up to a door at the end of the hall and unlocked it.

"This is nice," he said, stepping inside.

Laura followed, standing in the middle of the room as she looked around at the floral walls and the dark furniture. It all looked antique, and definitely came from Earth.

"I think I'll be quite comfortable here," he told her, and he went over to a window and opened it, pulling back sheer nets to let in salty air fresh off the sea.

"So Ace and Devon are in rooms just down the hall -"

"And I'm in here," the Doctor replied, still looking out of the window, "Although I have a feeling they will soon be sharing a room, not that it's any of my business...or maybe it is..."

"What do you mean?" she asked him.

He was still watching the waves roll to shore as he replied to her question.

"_There's a problem," _he said quietly, _"And I don't know what to do for the best."_

And then he turned from the window, walked over to the door and closed it, turning the lock, before walking back to the window where Laura stood looking at him with a confused expression.

"What kind of a problem?" she asked him, feeling startled by the troubled look she saw in his eyes.

He gave a heavy sigh.

"It's Ace!" he exclaimed, "I need to talk to her about something and I can't..."  
Laura was looking at him intently now.

"What can't you talk to her about?"

As he looked back at her, he wished he could tell her everything, and felt certain that eventually, he would, because the weight of the secret was too great to bear alone, thinking of Ace being ignorant to the truth was breaking his hearts and so deeply he was afraid to question why – but Laura was here, and the door was locked and he had not stopped feeling that warmth that flowed through his senses every time he looked at her...

"We'll talk about it later," he said quietly, "And by the way, you haven't asked me where _your _room is."

"You haven't booked it yet," she reminded him.

He stepped closer and spoke softly in reply as her closeness made him forget everything but the fact that a safe harbour from the storm could be found in the arms of this woman.

"_I wanted to wait," _he told her, _"In case you decided to accept my offer and stay here with me."_

And as she looked into his eyes, she smiled.

"I'd like that very much, Doctor," she told him, and as he put his arms around her, thoughts of Ace fell away as he welcomed her closeness and left his troubles far outside the locked bedroom door.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Ace had got up from the bench, took hold of Devon's hand and walked with him towards the open door of the guest house.

They had met with the woman who owned the place, and she had explained the Doctor had booked their rooms on the top floor, and handed them keys.

As Ace and Devon headed for the stairs, Ace kept her voice low as she giggled.

"Separate rooms? I'm with you!"

And he smiled, gripping her hand a little tighter as they began to climb the stairway.

Halfway up he paused, taking a rest to get his breath back.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, I wish you'd stop asking that question!"

"But you were really ill when we found you – maybe the Professor's right, maybe you should go to the medical centre, just be be sure you're okay."

"I said I'm fine and I meant it – I'm okay for now, if I get any problems I will definitely contact the medical centre but for now, there's no need. I just want to enjoy myself, is that too much to ask?"

And as she looked into his eyes, she felt awkward, unsure of how to answer the question.

He looked well, completely recovered from his ordeal now. But it had happened so fast and she couldn't help but wonder if he really _was_ as well as he believed himself to be...

"Devon, the Professor usually knows best. And I really don't want you to get ill. I think you should get checked over just to be safe."

"I'm not doing it today!" he exclaimed, holding on to her hand as they started to climb the stairway again, "I want to rest, I want to get used to this new planet, and I want to be with you."

He sounded weary all of a sudden, but Ace put that down to the fact that he was simply weary of her questions, and she fell silent.

They reached the top of the stairs and began to walk down the carpeted hallway, searching for the rooms the Doctor had booked.

* * *

The Doctor was on his back and he gave a sigh as a cool breeze shifted through the room, cooling the heat from his skin.

"I wish I had more moments like this in life," he said softly, looking up at the ceiling as an overhead fan turned but not nearly fast enough to completely cool the room.

Laura was beside him, they were both together in tangled sheets after he had taken her to bed and frantic, impatient lovemaking had followed.

He had tried to take it slow but after he slid off his tie and she reached for his shirt, their clothes had been off in moments and were now in a messy heap on the floor, as if her uniform was trying to spoon his jumper and her underwear was happy to be nestled inside his upturned hat.

She shifted closer to him and turned on her side and he looked into her eyes and smiled, seeing the flush that had spread through her face was still present, a left over from their love making.

"I wish we could live every day like this," he said to her, "But life is _never_ perfect..."

And the sparkle in her eyes faded as she looked at him.

"What do you mean? We make each other happy, what's wrong with that?"

And again the Doctor thought of Ace.

He looked into the eyes of the woman he had spent a warm afternoon making love to, and suddenly the weight of his secret was too great to carry alone.

He had not known her long but he knew her well enough to have the measure of her – Laura could be trusted.

_Yes, he could tell her..._

"Are you close to Devon Travis?" he asked her.

She laughed softly.

"Close? Why would I be close to him? I worked security, he was a scientist! I saw him sometimes at the coffee machine. He was funny at the Christmas party when he got drunk. And he always used to say good morning to everyone. That's about all. Why?"

The Doctor was still watching the fan rotating as he took in a deep breath.

"_Devon and Ace are getting closer. And when he broke into the power core to stop the countdown, he absorbed a fatal dose of radiation."_

Laura stared at him.

"What? No, that can't be right – he's okay now."

"The particular type of alien radioactive material he was exposed to causes pain, mild burns initially – and then it fades away while it settles into the body. In a few days time, or maybe sooner, Devon will be in terrible pain as the radiation begins to attack his body – and _where_ it attacks will be random, he had total exposure so it could destroy his vision, his ability to walk or speak, it could settle into bones or internal organs and start to destroy them. No one can predict how or when it will strike and he has zero chance of survival in the long term."

Laura drew in a slow breath as she considered all he had told her.

"That poor man..."

"And poor Ace. He knows everything, Laura – but he doesn't want the bubble to burst, he doesn't want the truth coming between him and all he's building with Ace. I've told him he must tell her the truth, but he keeps putting it off."

And he turned on his side and placed his hand on her hip as he looked into her eyes.

"I've not been the best friend you imagine towards Ace. I could have treated her with a great deal more fairness that I did in the past. I've often withheld knowledge from her, I admit it, I've been too secretive. But over the past couple of years I've learned to be more open with her. And I fear our friendship will be lost forever if she finds out I kept something as big as this from her."

"So tell her," Laura said, "You're worried about her, and she's got a right to know the truth."

The Doctor gave a weary sigh as he thought of his own opinion on the matter.

"But Devon is dying. It seems very wrong to step in and tell her when he should be the one doing that. And it doesn't matter what I say or when, Ace will _always_ hold it against me that I kept her in the dark. I made her a promise, you see – no more secrets. That was a long time ago and I've broken that vow by saying nothing about Devon."

As he looked at her he was gently stroking her hip and the feel of his touch made her want to reach for him again, but she held back as she thought about the problem he faced.

"You're a Time Lord who's lived many lifetimes, and you're asking _me _for advice?" she said in surprise.

He looked at her apologetically.

"The passing of time," he told her, "Doesn't provide all the answers, nor can it _ever _provide the kind of wisdom to know how to deal with a situation like this, where there can never be a right answer. I see Ace smiling and happy and I see a light in her eyes like I've never seen before, and I know soon that joy will dissolve into grief and it's almost too much to bear."

Laura was thinking again of the scientist who always said good morning to her back at the research base.

"Poor Devon," she said again, "Maybe you shouldn't feel so bad about respecting his wishes – I mean, everyone dreams of finding the right one, of being happy forever. I know reality doesn't make it as easy as the fairytale, but we all want that. If he's found that at the end, maybe you should say nothing, just let them spend what time he has left together. I know you'll be there for her when the worst happens – how long does he have left exactly?"

As the thought had hit her, Laura's eyes had widened.

"And what about the radiation? Is Ace safe to get close to him?"

"Yes, of course she is. That particular type of radiation was chosen to protect the power core because it will be absorbed by every living thing inside the chamber if the seal was tampered with, and once absorbed it sinks into the body, it can't spread to others by contact."

"But he was the only person in there at the time."

"Exactly, Laura. He's taken a huge dose of alien radiation and there's no known cure. He's still hoping something will turn up – but that's wishful thinking. I think he knows that deep down inside but he doesn't want to face up to it. He has very little time left."

"But wouldn't you feel the same about the truth if you was in his situation?"

He looked into Laura's eyes.

"I think I already _am_ running from the truth," he said, "I have been running for years one way or another, this situation is no different."

And as she looked at him she wondered what secrets hid behind his eyes, but her Time Lord lover was giving nothing away.

"Running, how?" she said softly.

His hand was stroking her hip again as his eyes darkened.

"It's a long story," he said in a low voice, and then, filled by the need for the comfort of her closeness, her shifted nearer to the warmth of her body and took her in his arms, silencing her questions with a kiss.

* * *

Further down the hallway, Devon grabbed at the bed post as he gave a gasp and pleasure flooded his senses.

"_I love you Ace!"_ he gasped, and as his body trembled, he let go of the bed post and collapsed into her arms, their bodies warm and damp with sweat and room filled with the scent of their lovemaking.

Ace was breathless as she wrapped her arms around him and gently kissed him.

"I love you too, I've never been so sure about anything in my life...I _know_ I love you."

Devon turned on his back and Ace turned on her side, resting her head on his shoulder.

He was still breathing hard as sweat ran from his skin – a little heavier than she had expected, but recalling how unwell he had been, she was not surprised at this.

He reached up and ran his hand over her hair.

"_I wish I'd met you sooner."_

"What matters is, we've met now, we've found each other."

"I know..."

His breathing was still coming in short, sharp bursts and he blinked away tears as he stroked her hair, thankful her head was on his shoulder and she didn't see the tears that glazed his eyes.

"_If I'd met you sooner I could have spent longer with you," _he whispered, _"We could have had years -"_

"Don't be silly!" Ace said, planting a gentle kiss on his chest as his breathing began to slow, "I spent years travelling through space and time. We couldn't have met until now."

She ran a gentle hand over his chest, smoothing away sweat that made his skin glisten, and settled her head against his chest once more, listening to the beating of his heart as it slowed to a normal beat once more.

"I feel as if I've waited all my life for you," Devon said softly as his hand swept over her hair again, "I mean, there's been other women, of course – but I just knew when I looked at you – I knew I'd wasted my time with all the others...all of them over the years, none compared to you, and I knew I was right the first time I kissed you."

"And now we've got all the time we need," Ace said, and as she raised her head from his chest and looked at him, she saw tears in his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said as sadness choked his voice, "I'm just thankful for you. _Believe me when I say you will never know how thankful I am, Ace._"

And then he pulled her into a tight embrace and Ace held on to him, saying nothing as he gave a muffled sob as emotion over came him and he buried his face in her hair.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when the Doctor was dressed once more and ready to leave the room.

He straightened his paisley tie and looked into the mirror, into his own eyes, and then he caught sight of Laura reflected over his shoulder. She was also up and dressed and she was smiling at him, and he briefly smiled back, even though as he cast a second glance into the mirror he hated the look in his own eyes:

_He was deceiving Ace, he was holding back the truth and even though he had shared that with Laura, it wasn't enough._

_He needed to talk to Ace..._

"I'm ready to go," Laura said, "Are we having dinner here at the guest house?"

"No," he replied, "We're going out. I won't bother to disturb Ace, she's probably with Devon. I'm going to leave them alone for now. I don't doubt they're having a happy time together – I don't want to be the one who destroys that."

And he turned to her and saw understanding in her eyes.

He put on his hat and picked up his umbrella.

"Let's take a walk along the beach and see where it leads," he said, "I feel like leaving everything behind for a while."

And he unlocked the door, and they left the room together.

* * *

Devon laughed as he wrapped his arms around Ace and kissed her.

She set down her hairbrush on the dressing table and looked at him with a playful expression in her eyes.

"I'm trying to get ready, I can't go down for dinner looking like I've been -"

"Making love all afternoon?" he said softly, and kissed her fondly.

Like Ace, he was also dressed and ready to leave, but his hair was still damp from a shower that had taken much longer than expected, because they had taken that shower together, kissing under the warm water and then making love as the steam rose in the bathroom.

He picked up the brush and ran it over his dark hair, and then handed the brush back to her.

"So, what's the plan for this evening? How about a nice walk along the beach as the sun sets? I never thought I'd get the chance to see an alien sunset...now I can't wait for it!"

"I think if we go left away from here and take the path it leads to a promenade, I saw it a bit further down the coast when we arrived here."

Devon smoothed down his jacket and then checked the time on his new gold watch.

"We could go now, we've got an hour before dinner. Or we could find somewhere to eat while we're out. What do you think, Ace?"

She smiled.

"I want a beach and a sunset with you," she said warmly.

He took hold of her hand.

"Then the beach it is!" he announced, and they left the room and he paused to lock the door, and then they walked along the hallway, reached the stairway and went down it together.

* * *

As Ace and Devon walked away from the guest house, taking the sand-blown road that led to a winding path the snaked up the hillside to overlook the sea, the warm air blew salt off the tide and the sound of waves sighing to shore filled the air.

"This is lovely," she said as they walked, "I could stay here forever with you."

Devon glanced at her.

"I'd like that more than anything," he said quietly, and then as he caught a questioning look in her eyes, he said no more and the made their way up the slope.

At the top the pathway was sandy and covered either side by parched sea grass, the sun was dipping lower and the water below ran peacefully in a sighing ripple to yellow sands, like rolls of silk turning in and out in a soothing rhythm.

As they walked along Devon thought about her hopes for a future that could never be, and he looked at her, and she smiled at him, and so he smiled back, not wanting to say the words that would shatter everything forever in a way that would see nothing being the same again...

"So, you didn't have a wife back on Earth?" Ace asked him.

"No," he replied, "I have no one to go back to even if I could – I was on my own. And that life is gone, I have to let go of it because this is my reality now and I know I have to make the most of that. I'm one of the lucky ones, so is Laura – that base will be burned to the ground, the bodies reduced to ash. The Doctor told me what will happen – the cover up – I'll be presumed dead anyway. I'm just thankful I'm not, I'm glad I survived."

Then they stopped walking. Devon was slightly breathless and he caught a flicker of concern in her eyes that he quickly dismissed with a smile.

"That was quite a climb! Let's sit down for a while and look at the sea, it's so beautiful."

And he sat down on the grass and she sat beside him as they looked out to an alien ocean that didn't look any different to the waters of Earth, except that here the sea was deep blue with no trace of pollution.

* * *

While Ace and Devon were sitting by the sea, the Doctor and Laura were not far behind, but the Doctor's pace had been much slower as he walked along deep in thought.

Laura kept stopping to watch sea gulls dip and weave in the late afternoon sky as sunlit water sparkled lighting the surface of the sea as if it were diamond-scattered, but the Doctor's thoughts were still with Ace and a seemingly impossible situation.

And then he stopped walking, leaning against an old, low, wooden fence as he looked out across the beach where calm waters rolled to a flawless yellow shore.

"I've come up with a plan," he said, "And I don't like it but it's the best way. _I'm going to tell Ace its time to leave._"

And he turned his head, and he saw Laura was staring at him in disbelief.

"You're going to tell her to get back in the Tardis and just go? You can't do that, she loves the guy! You can't expect her to just walk away from him!"

And the Doctor gave a weary sigh.

"I know that and I will hate myself for it, but if he won't tell her the truth I have to protect her somehow."

"_But you won't tell her yourself."_

Guilt flickered in his eyes.

"How can I without losing her friendship? She knows I understand the nature of the radiation and its effects. I've kept a lot of secrets from her during my travels – a lot of things I didn't have to keep silent about, but it's just my way. I wanted her to learn, to work things out for herself – but I guess there's a world of difference between what I think is acceptable as Time Lord and what she finds acceptable as mortal human being. Perhaps some lessons have been too harsh. I only ever wanted to do right by her, but she won't see it that way, not when she finds out about this. She'll never forgive me for not telling her about Devon."

Laura had heard all he had said, and disagreed with much as she wondered why he had felt the need to keep so many secrets in the past, but she could only touch the surface of this situation, no one could get inside the mind of a Time Lord as old as the Doctor and understand his reasoning, he was the only one who knew his true motives...

There was a question she wanted to ask, one she had touched on before but now she recognised it as a dangerous one:

_Do you love Ace?_

Laura felt sure his fear of losing her had to stem from a fear far deeper than losing a close friend. While they had been in bed, wrapped in damp sheets and sharing kisses, he had told her much about his many lives and she guessed Ace had to mean more to him than just a friend for him to fear losing her so deeply. The Doctor had enjoyed the company of many companions over the centuries, some friends, others lovers – all had left one way or another eventually.

_But he deeply feared losing Ace McShane..._

"But she won't just leave Devon!" Laura exclaimed, "Think about it, Doctor – would you walk away from someone you loved?"

The Doctor thought of Ace.

"No," he said in a low voice, and then he looked back out to sea, falling silent as he kept his thoughts and secrets locked away firmly in twin hearts that rarely opened up to reveal the truth of the matter in its entirety to anyone.

* * *

Ace and Devon were still sitting on the grassy bank, looking out at a view of the sinking sun in a pink and golden sky that made the water below it glitter in a rainbow of colour.

"I'm going to tell the Professor I'd like to stay here with you," she said as she watched the sunlight dance on calm water, "If he doesn't like the idea, maybe we could both stay on with him , how do you feel about seeing a bit more of the universe?"

"Does that universe involve the possibility of running into more Cybermen?"

"Hopefully not. I can't tell what we will come up against. Don't get me wrong, sometimes it's fun. It's not all doom and gloom out there."

He turned his head and their eyes met.

"I don't want to leave this planet. I've lost Earth, I can never go back there and this place is the next best thing for me. In some ways it's even better, cleaner, unspoiled – I could spend my last days here. But if the only way I can stay with you is to step back in that Police Box and go off into the unknown, I'll do it just to be with you."

Ace stared at him. For a moment no words passed between them as the sea washed fine sand and worn shells to shore on rolls of smooth white silk and it was the only sound that filled the air.

Then Ace started to smile.

"You'd really do that for me?"

He smiled too and nodded.

"You bet I would!"

And then he coughed hard, catching his breath.

"Are you okay?"

Ace sounded worried again, and he hated to know that, so he got up quickly, ignoring the searing pain that had shot through his stomach and was now fading out, leaving him feeling light-headed.

He took her hand and she got up too and they began to walk along the pathway once more.

"So," he said, "Where's this promenade?"

"Left," she replied, pointing up ahead where the pathway turned.

"We go left then."

"Right," she replied, and he looked at her as amusement dance his eyes.

"Left or right. Ace? Don't confuse me, I'm lost now!"

And she laughed.

"You know what I mean, Devon!"

And he laughed too, and then he coughed again, so hard that he lost his grip on her hand.

"Devon?"

Nausea swept over him as pain throbbed and suddenly his throat was clogged up.

She saw a flash of panic in his eyes as he struggled to breathe, raising his hand to his mouth to cough again, and then as blood sprayed out, covering his hand and staining his lips as she gave a gasp.

"Devon?" she said again, placing her hands on his shoulders to steady him.

He drew in another breath, coughed again and more blood ran from his mouth as his face turned deathly pale and he sank to his knees, briefly clutching at his stomach as pain throbbed again.

"Get help..." he said breathlessly, and collapsed on the sandy pathway, coughing again as more blood ran from his mouth.

Ace looked left and right, and caught sight of the Doctor and Laura making their way up the path in the distance.

"_Doctor!"_ she yelled, _"Help!"_

And the Doctor, who had been talking to Laura, looked up, saw her waving, and broke into a run.

* * *

Ace was on her knees beside Devon, who was on his side and pale and shaking. Blood had run from his mouth on to the path way and he was breathing heavily.

Ace was clutching his bloodstained hand as the Doctor and Laura arrived on the scene and she looked up at him with fear in her eyes.

"He just collapsed!" she said tearfully, "Do something, get some help!"

Devon drew in a slow breath, and then another, and looked up at the Doctor.

"_Tell her for me..."_ he murmured, and slipped into unconsciousness.

Ace gripped his hand tighter as more tears filled her eyes and she looked up at him.

"Tell me what, Professor?" she said tearfully,_ "Tell me what?_" but then Devon coughed again and Ace opened his mouth, clearing his airway.

"I'll go and fetch help!" the Doctor said, and turned and ran back down the pathway, as Laura followed, leaving Ace kneeling beside the man she loved as she gave a sob and clutched his hand and tearfully begged him to please hold on...


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6  


The Doctor was worried about Ace.

After calling for help and Devon being rushed to the medical centre, Laura had done all she could to comfort her, but Ace just wanted to sit alone by a window as she watched the sun setting, sinking into a sky streaked amber and purple, it was the sun set she had wanted to watch with Devon but now she was watching it alone...

Laura had gone off to find a vending machine to get some coffee.

The Doctor stood there, leaning against the wall instead of taking a seat as he fixed his gaze on Ace, and he felt more regret than she would ever know:

_Devon's last words to him before he passed out had been to tell Ace the truth._

_But Ace hadn't even thought about that, not now she was here, waiting for news of her lover._

The Doctor drew in a deep breath and as he spoke he felt as if his words were fighting their way through glue; it was getting stuck in his throat before he said it, because he did _not_ want to tell her the truth, that he had known something she was unaware of, and he had also known it from the very start...

_But she would work it out for herself soon, when she thought about it..._

"Ace..."

She gave no reply, her head still turned to the window.

"_Ace..."_

His second attempt to find his voice came out clearly, but it did nothing to lessen the dread building deep in his twin hearts.

She turned her head.

Her eyes were glazed but she had stopped shedding tears now, she was pulling herself together, deciding to be strong and hope for good news. Ace was not the kind of person to cave in emotionally for anything, she was a fighter and had been all her life. She would stay strong for Devon, he knew that was what she had resolved to do.

And he couldn't begin to predict her reaction and how it would change when she learned the terrible truth...

"What, Professor?" she asked him, and her voice was hushed, as if she was still in shock from Devon's sudden collapse.

He wondered if he would be better off waiting a while longer, but then cancelled that thought, because it was a selfish one, and he had been selfish for long enough in his need to protect her, yet knowing his choice was hurting her at the same time and now, _now_ it had to end.

"_Devon was harmed by the radiation."_

She just looked at him blankly, as if the statement was obvious as she cast her mind back to the state he had been in when they had first met back at the base.

"I know, but he got over that...why would he be so sick now?"

The Doctor looked at her.

Ace looked back at him.

Their gaze stayed fixed on one another as he stepped closer to the chair where she sat and he looked down at her.

"I need to tell you something," he said quietly.

And Ace was looking up at him, a rosy glow cast across her face and hair from the rays of the sinking sun beyond the window.

_This was it._

_This was the moment their friendship would be torn apart, he knew it, he was a dreading it but the moment was now because her expression was changing as she caught the look in his eyes and confusion filled her own._

"Professor?" she said, "What do you know? Is this about Devon?"

"_The radiation he was exposed to was designed to seep into every living thing in the sealed chamber when the security seal was shattered. He was the only one present. He absorbed something like one hundred and twenty percent Xaygrolium radiation."_

Ace was still looking at him. She had heard him, but his explanation was yet to sink in.

"And he got over it."

The Doctor slowly shook his head.

"No, Ace. That was just a phase of the poisoning. It went dormant before it started to take effect. Xaygrolium exposure is treatable up to a maximum of ten percent with a life expectancy of five years. Devon was exposed to much, _much_ more than that. I'm sorry, but he's dying."

Ace continued to look at him for a moment, and then she shook her head.

"No," she said, "No, that can't be right...no..."

And then she rose from her seat and took a step forward, glaring into his eyes.

"He told you to tell me...is that what he meant?"

The Doctor nodded.

"Ace, I'm sorry, he wanted to wait until he had to tell you, he loves you, he was happy and -"

The stinging slap to his face cut off his words.

Ace was trembling as tears ran from her eyes and she looked at him in fury.

"_You didn't tell me? YOU DIDN'T BLOODY TELL ME? "_

Tears were spilling down her face as anger turned to hatred.

"_How could you keep this a secret, Professor? WHY?_"

And suddenly he had no more words, at least none would come because tears that filled his eyes choked up his voice.

He drew in a sharp breath, barely able to look at Ace for fear of seeing the rage in her eyes._ This was it, the moment he had dreaded, and it was every bit as painful as he had expected it to be..._

"Because I saw you happy! Because he's dying and he knows it and it was his choice alone!"

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

"But if you'd told me at the start -"

"_If I'd told you, what?" _the Doctor said sharply, _"You wouldn't have loved him? Wouldn't have let your human heart open up to him? You would have shut off all emotion and turned your back? Ace, I've known the true nature of the human race for all of time and one thing that can not change is their capacity for it!"_

"For what?" she demanded.

He drew in a slow breath and blinked away tears as he wished he could cancel out the pain in his own hearts.

"For love, Ace," he said in a low voice, "It's the one thing you can't stop feeling...every living creature in the universe capable of emotion succumbs to it, but _none_ do it as well as you humans!"

Ace took a step back, rage still burning in her eyes as she struggled to hold back her anger and remembered that Devon needed her, and _this _was solving nothing.

"I'm sorry," he said, "I did what I thought was best. I left the matter with Devon."

Ace wiped away her tears with the back of her hand.

"_You knew!" _she said bitterly, and then as he reached for her, she turned her back.

And the Doctor felt sure in that moment, that as she turned away it hurt more than the rage in her eyes, more than the slap to his face. It hurt more than anything could, ever...

He felt terrified, the thought raced through his mind that he had lost her, he had lost Ace, she had slipped through his fingers and...

_Since when had Ace ever been his to lose?_

_He still couldn't face the reasoning behind that question that hung in his mind and refused to evaporate._

"I'm sorry," he told her quietly, "I thought I was doing the right thing! Being a Time Lord doesn't guarantee perfection, I'm -"

"Miss McShane?"

The Doctor fell silent, standing back and half turning to the window and the glow of the setting sun as the nurse began to talk to Ace.

He said nothing, just listened, and as the conversation unfolded, his hearts ached terribly for Ace.

"As you know Professor Travis is suffering from heavy Xaygrolium exposure," she said, "And his condition is terminal."

Ace drew in a slow breath.

"Yes," she said quietly, "I do now...I know that."

And the Doctor briefly closed his eyes, wishing he could have stopped and thought about his choice and why he made it:

_He couldn't protect Ace from this, not this, he should have told her at the start, but at the time, he had thought only of protecting her – his head had been ruled by his own selfishness, the need to control the situation, to keep Ace happy simply because he could not bear to see her cry. And it had ended badly, and there was nothing he could do to put it right now..._

The nurse was still talking.

"We have tried to send the radiation back into the dormant phase, but the treatment has left him extremely weak. And he will not recover from this flare up because it caused instant damage."

"What kind of damage?" Ace said in a hushed voice.

"The radiation attacked his internal organs. We can't replace the tissues with cybernetic grafts because his whole body is affected and the grafts would not be successful. So the only other choice was to remove the affected tissue and close the wounds with a cybernetic seal."

Ace sounded shocked as she spoke up again.

"What's happened to him?"

"Professor Travis has had two thirds of his stomach removed, there was also a flare up in his lower spine so we had to remove some bone and tissue, he will not be able to walk following this procedure – but as I said, he is dying and he will never recover from the damage already sustained."

"How long does he have left?" Ace asked her.

"Perhaps between two and six months. It depends how well he responds to the treatment he's been given, he was heavily exposed and I'm afraid the outlook isn't good."

"I want to see him."

"Yes of course. Come with me."

And then they walked off down the corridor, and the Doctor blinked away tears, those tears had sprung to his eyes the moment he had heard grief in her voice as she struggled to speak as emotion choked off her words.

Ace McShane meant more to him than he dared to think about, and he had just wrecked everything, ruined the whole of the bond that held them together in a precious friendship by choosing to remain silent when he ought to have spoken out.

Being a Time Lord didn't make him immune from regret for mistakes, he had been trying to tell her that before the nurse had arrived.

_But it was too late now._

_Ace hated him and he knew he deserved that hatred..._

He began to walk down the corridor, towards the room where Ace would be anxiously watching over her dying lover.

* * *

As the Doctor opened the door he felt like he had no place to be there, this was about Ace and Devon, and in many ways he felt like an intruder, so stood there in the open doorway as Ace sat next to Devon's bed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she said tearfully.

As she reached for his hand and gently took hold of it, Devon opened his eyes and slowly turned his head and met her gaze. He was pale and shivering, he looked weak all of a sudden and the lines that ran into his arms seemed to be doing little to ease his pain.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, "I knew I was in trouble when I shattered the radioactive seal...it was stupid, really – one man stopping a countdown, saving the world for the price of his own existence...I'm not a hero. If I was, I would have died there and then, got it over with. Not lingered and lied to you and made such a mess."

And he drew in a slow breath and briefly closed his eyes again, then looked at Ace once more.

"I would have told you! I just didn't know how to! I wanted to be happy just for a while, can't you understand that?"

Pain reflected in her eyes as she nodded.

"I get it but you could have told me sooner... _before_ this happened!"

"I tried," he said weakly as he struggled to hold back tears, "But it was perfect...who would want to shatter that?"

And the Doctor stood in silence, not daring to speak up in case she turned around and he saw that hatred in her eyes that caused him such deep pain.

His hearts were racing as he also struggled to hold back tears. Ace was broken by the news but trying so hard to be compassionate, she had just become aware of the truth – that her time with him would be short.

_Of course she would forgive Devon, she would do that instantly._

_But the Doctor knew the anger she held towards him for remaining silent would last a lifetime..._

He summoned shaky courage and found his voice.

"Ace..."

She turned her head, that look was burning in her eyes and breaking his hearts at the same time.

"_What do you want?"_ she said in a low voice as she continued to hold Devon's hand.

"I'm going to return the power core to its planet of manufacture. And then I'm coming back and I'm going to find you and Devon a proper place to stay."

He glanced at Laura who was now standing beside him.

"I want you to stay with Ace and Devon. I won't be gone long."

Ace replied through gritted teeth.

"I don't care if you _never_ come back!"

And Laura saw hurt register in his eyes and it went far deeper than it should for someone who was a mere companion...she didn't want to think too much about what that look implied because it was a fleeting glance – but a look could say so much...

Then the Doctor turned to her as he blinked rapidly to clear his vision.

And in that moment Laura knew – he felt something for Ace McShane. Perhaps he would never admit it for fear of jeopardising their friendship, but he cared deeply for her...

"I'll be back soon," he promised her and briefly kissed her cheek, and then he was gone, a lonely man walking away to return to his Police Box.

* * *

Laura closed the door and stood there looking at Ace, who was stroking Devon's hair as he slipped into an uneasy sleep.

"Is there anything I can do?" she asked, and Ace shook her head, her gaze still fixed on her sleeping lover as he trembled and drew in a sharp breath, fighting pain that ran through his body.

"I'll be outside, then," she added, and quietly left the room.

Ace looked down at Devon as his body shuddered and then his breathing began to relax.

"_You would have followed me through time and space,"_ she whispered, _"Just to be with me. No one's ever loved me like that, not like you do...I won't leave you now, I promise."_

And then as his grip on her hand relaxed, Ace watched anxiously, gripped by a sudden fear that shot ice through her blood, but as she watched the rise and fall of his chest, for now, the fear subsided, because Devon Travis was still alive, still breathing...

* * *

The journey through space and time to return the power core to the place of manufacture had taken moments. He had returned the core, still locked in the case, and then returned to the Tardis, but as he reached for the lever to activate the space-time controls, he stopped, pausing for thought:

_Ace loved Devon. He knew it and he didn't want to think about why his own hearts ached so much over that fact._

_But did Devon love her as much as he claimed?_

_Perhaps._

_Or, perhaps not, perhaps Ace was convenient, perhaps he loved her but in a way that had been brought about by circumstance rather than a meeting of hearts..._

_She was easy to fall in love with. _

The Doctor knew that more than anyone – and he still didn't want to think about that.

But_ something_ was still nagging at him.

He wasn't certain of anything as he followed his instincts and consulted the time line as laid out by the Tardis, and then set the co ordinates for Earth, three weeks after the cover up inferno had reduced the research laboratory to ash...

The Doctor paused again as the Tardis landed, not ready to open the doors, because thoughts were with Ace far off on the future Earth colony.

_His thoughts were always with Ace._

_He knew his thoughts would never be elsewhere, he had known it right back to the day he had talked with her about the universe being full of the pain of unrequited love._

_And what a pain it was to bear:_

_To love one person, that one person who was out of his reach..._

_It had just hit him._

_Yes, he really did love her, in a way that would never fade or slip away._

_And he had lived for years with her beside him, his friend, loved one, beloved precious Ace who meant more to him than the whole of the twelve galaxies._

_And he could never be with her, never know her love returned._

_He knew it for sure now, because his fate had been sealed once and for all by her love for another man. It didn't matter that she would lose him to death – dying wouldn't kill her love, that would burn on for the rest of her mortal days because real love was like that._

_Her love for him, her love for another man..._

And he didn't fight the tears than ran down his face as he thought about it.

His hearts ached, and then he brushed away tears she would never see and took in a deep breath and left the Tardis, stepping outside into a large churchyard filled with old grave stones.

* * *

The Doctor stood by the shade of a yew tree as he watched the mourners file out of the church. This was the memorial service for the victims of the Cyberman attack – except they would never know the truth, because it had been covered up with a fire that had disintegrated everything, reducing the building and the bodies inside to ash...

He waited, watching as the men and women walked away towards several parked limousines. All were draped in the colour of mourning and they said little as they departed – but what could they say, about a fire that was alleged to have wiped out everything, cremating their loved ones in the process?

The Doctor's hearts weighed with sadness as he saw faces of strangers and felt their grief:

A father who had lost a son or daughter, a weeping woman who was now a widow, a young woman with a child in her arms who had lost a father or an uncle...

_So many grieving souls because of the Cybermen._

Anger burned in his eyes fierce as the fires of time as he recalled arriving too late, after the attack on the base. But it had happened now, and the Cyberman attack was yet to claim the final life in this tragedy – Professor Devon Travis lay dying on a far away planet in the distant future, the final victim, dying because he had smashed the seal and stopped the countdown.

This world should have been obliterated on that day, it would have been, but for the actions of a man who sacrificed his own future to save the world...

And something was _still_ nagging at him.

Devon must have left _someone _behind, friends, family...

There was a sea of flowers neatly piled outside the church.

The scent of them filled the air cancelling out the usual sickly sweet air church yards carried. Every bouquet bore a message. All had been written by the grieving and it made the air feel heavy.

The Doctor walked into the church and here the only scent that lingered was age and beeswax polish. He walked slowly down the aisle to the front pew, where a single mourner still sat alone, draped in black...

* * *

The Doctor reached the front pew and sat down beside her.

She was wearing a sheer veil and through it he saw her eyes were pale but tear stained and her dark hair was tied back.

She was just sitting there, eyes fixed on the cross on the wall as she remained lost in her own thoughts, no doubt asking silent questions to God and hoping the one she mourned for somehow knew she was here...

"I was late for the service," he said quietly, "I hope it went well."

She was still looking ahead.

"Yes," she replied, "So many people said kind words about everyone...all of them, all the people who died on that day. But words are not enough. Words can't bring them back."

"Very true," the Doctor replied, "I was here for a friend of mine – a Professor Travis. Did you know him?"

And the woman looked at him sharply and raised her veil.

"Know him?" she said in a shocked voice, "Of course I did, he was my partner! We lived together for seven years!"

And the Doctor fell silent for a moment as he gathered his thoughts.

_Devon had said he had never known true love until he met Ace._

_Perhaps that was true, or perhaps not..._

"I never knew," he replied, "He didn't mention you."

Resentment briefly flashed in her eyes and then it was dampened out by grief once more.

"He rarely did," she told him, "We didn't have an easy life together. Always fighting, always quarrels..everything had to be his way, it was all about Devon. But I forgave him because I loved him, even when he left me for another woman, I forgave him and sure enough he came back to me...same old story. But we can't chose who we fall in love with, can we?"

And again the Doctor thought of Ace.

"No," he relied honestly, "We can't choose that."

And then he rose from his seat.

"Well, the service is over. I'd better go. It was nice meeting you, Miss -"

"Meade," she said, "Faith Meade... and you are?"

He smiled.

"Just the Doctor," he said, "It was nice meeting you, Miss Meade. And I'm truly sorry for your loss."

And then he turned away and walked back up the aisle and out of the church.

* * *

When the Doctor stepped outside, he drew in a breath of floral scented air and pushed away thoughts of guilt, it had been hard it sit beside Faith as she grieved for Devon, believing him to be dead when he knew he was still alive and far away on a distant planet in the distant future...

But this was enough of a mess without dragging yet another person into the mix. Faith had mourned for her loss and believed him dead, and now it seemed best for her believe the lie...

He walked back up the path, past the flowers and the old graves, and returned it the Tardis.

As the door closed and he walked over to the console he paused for thought again, knowing he could keep no more secrets from Ace, not ever.

His hearts still weighed heavy as he set the space-time controls and set the Tardis on a course back to the Earth colony:

He owed Ace nothing less than honesty now, and he would ensure that he gave her the truth.

But it didn't make him feel any better about doing so as the Tardis vanished and set off on a journey back towards the Earth colony where Ace remained at the bedside of her lover.

The Doctor wanted to do the right thing, not for himself but for Ace and only Ace, not even to set right his past mistakes, but to be honest and open and tell her everything – and he knew this time he had to, for her sake:

_But it didn't make the task that lie ahead any easier – he knew in order to give her that truth, he would have to question a dying man and demand to hear the truth... _


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The Tardis had materialised back on the Earth colony, and the Doctor stood there alone in the console room still thinking on his intentions:

_The thought had crossed his mind to simply delay his return, arrive back here in a few month's time..._

_Did Devon have months,or was it weeks, or even days?_

_If he had come back later, it would have been over and so simple, collecting grieving Ace and taking her home to the Tardis..._

_No._

_He was not a coward, nor did he wish to ever shy away from any task,no matter how difficult._

_He wanted to be fair, to do what was right, but the lines were blurred by the sentence of death that hung over Professor Devon Travis, a man whose life would not have been out of the ordinary in any way had he not chosen to save the world from destruction..._

The Doctor gave a heavy sigh and walked out of the Tardis and stood there looking towards the tall building in the heart of town where Devon was desperately clinging to what remained of his life. He was still thinking on the best way to handle the new information as he began to walk along the road that led to the medical centre, and with every step he took he was also aware it took him a step closer to Ace once more...

* * *

Devon was resting and Ace was at his bedside.

As the Doctor walked into the room, he glanced at Ace, saw a flicker of anger was still present in her eyes, but now it seemed she was more concerned about Devon and that concern had done much to dampen down her rage.

"I returned the power core," he said, "And now I'd like to find you and Devon a suitable place to live... if you'll allow me to do that."

Ace blinked away tears. She was still holding on to his hand and Devon had closed his eyes and was sleeping deeply.

"They said the treatment he had won't make much of a difference," she told him quietly, "He could be gone in a month, or even sooner... "

She drew in a sharp breath and held back from weeping, determined not to scream and cry and let out her pain at this moment as her lover lay resting.

"They just don't know how long, not for sure..."

"Perhaps it will be much longer than you think," he said hopefully, "He's got a huge incentive to stay alive - he has you."

And as the Doctor's gaze fell on Devon, he watched him sleeping, his pale skin shining with perspiration as he took slow breaths.

And now his mind was made up:

_He would say nothing because there was nothing positive to be gained from questioning a dying man's motives for declaring love for anyone..._

"Thanks,"Ace said quietly, "It would be nice if we could go somewhere -he doesn't want to die in here."

The Doctor stepped closer to the bed, close enough to look into her eyes, but not too close because he was too aware she wouldn't want him to get any closer, because she hadn't forgiven his secrecy yet, and probably never would...

"I'll also arrange for a nurse to stay with him at all times -"

"I don't want him being cared for by a stranger, not twenty four hours a day. I want to look after him, I mean as much as possibly can -"

"Ace, I don't think you realise what you're taking on,"he told her, and then he dropped his voice lower, "He's dying! It won't be easy. Part time care won't be enough, you won't be able to cope -"

"_Stop _telling me what I can and can't do!" she said sharply, and the tone of her voice wounded him far more than he dared to show.

"I'll sort out the accommodation,"he said, "And then we'll talk about the rest. I just want to help, Ace."

"I know you do,"she replied, but her attention was turned back to her lover as he lay sleeping, and the Doctor quietly left the room to go and find Laura, and make some new plans.

* * *

_The time passed._

The Doctor found Ace an apartment close to the beach and arranged for a nurse to be on call for Devon, the place was a short distance from town and Ace was happy with that arrangement - although the Doctor was _not_ happy to watch Ace grow more and more anxious as each day passed and Devon remained weak but very much alive and determined to stay that way. On a good day when he didn't need the pain blocked with drugs he could sit up in bed and watch the tide rolling to the shore, and Ace would sit with him, never leaving his side.

The Doctor was glad Devon enjoyed the beach front view, he elt it was the least he could do for him – he had wanted a sea view, now he had one until his last breath...

The Doctor had rented the apartment next door and moved into it with Laura, although he felt slightly guilty for sharing his life with her when his thoughts remained with Ace. He had lost count of the times he had felt her breath warm against his back as she whispered softly to him in the dead of night and he had faked sleep because his hearts were aching for someone he knew he could never be with.

_He was waiting for Devon to die._

Just the thought of it made him feel guilty, because he did not want Devon, or anyone else, to lose their life. He hated the thought of fragile humans coming to an end. But it was the only way the situation would end, and at least then he would find out the answer to the question that had been tormenting him:

_What would Ace do after Devon's death?_

_Would she leave this place and agree to return to the Tardis?_

_Or would she turn her back again and tell him to leave alone?_

Laura had settled in the weeks that had passed, she had settled well into life on the Earth colony and she had recently taken over as security guard for the apartment complex when the former guard had retired. She now had a home a job and a life here.

But he was yet to tell her he planned to step into the blue box that was standing in the corner of their front room and leave once Ace had made her choice...

He didn't know if Laura would agree to go with him. He wanted to care deeply about her answer when he made his offer to travel the stars with him, but Ace was still firmly lodged deep in his twin hearts and the truth he shared with no one refused to fade out...

* * *

The Doctor was thinking deeply about Ace as he opened the door and stepped out on to the patio. A short distance away, just over a low wall, was the beach and the deep blue water that ran to shore, rushing at the yellow sand like rolls of pure white silk.

He stood by the wall, placed his hands on it and looked across the beach, watching the water, then looking out to the horizon as he became lost in his thoughts once more.

His own voice echoed in his head as he turned over all the things he could share with no one:

_I am a Time Lord with many lifetimes behind me and many more to come. I should know better, I should know not to fall in love with a human but I did and to my cost... To my eternal cost even when her lifespan is over! I can't shut to off like turning out a light. I love Ace McShane and I can never tell her because she calls me Professor, she looks up to me just like she did in her youth when we first met - and her heart lies with Devon Travis._

_If I told her the truth she would have even more reason to hate me – I can see it now, that look that rips at both my hearts, she'd give me that look and ask what was the point now, after he's gone and she's broken by his loss?_

_What's the point in any of this? _

_I try to do the right thing always, sometimes I fail but nobody is perfect, not even me. All it would take is a moment of magnificent courage to come out with it and say, I love you. _

_But I can't do it and I don't think I ever will..._

_All I have ever wanted is to look into your eyes, summon that impossible amount of courage and TELL you how I feel. But I can't do it, Ace. _

_I just can't do it..._

The Doctor drew in a deep breath and watched as far off waves caught sunbeams, turning them into dancing diamonds on the surface of the water.

Life held such beauty at times and could hold so much more if he could have shared it with the one person who was hopelessly out of his reach...

The waves sighed to shore and then tugged back again, pulled out by the current and as he watched them, he thought of how his own heart felt like that, tugged by the ebb and flow of unrequited love in a situation that could never be resolved; they rolled in and out and back again like his own yearnings to _Tell her, don't tell her, try to tell her, don't dare to tell her..._ And like the ebb and flow of the tide, his story was not unique and was as old as time itself – yes, the universe _was_ full of the pain of unrequited love...

The Doctor continued to watch the water run to shore.

He could have stepped over the low, adjoining wall that led into the next patio, opened the door and gone inside and spent some time with Ace.

But she was with Devon, and he knew he was not welcome.

So he remained where he stood, watching a sea that seemed to sympathise with his pain.

* * *

In the apartment next door, Ace was sitting on the edge of Devon's bed.

He was sitting up leaning against pillows and his breathing was slightly laboured as perspiration made his skin shine. He was pale and shadows hung under his eyes and he had lost weight, he was also confined to bed because of the paralysis to his lower body, but it had not stopped Ace sleeping beside him every night, and sharing kisses with him when he had a rare good day when the pain left him alone.

He had been in terrible pain earlier that morning and she had called the nurse, who had given him a large dose of pain relief and stayed for another two hours to be sure he was comfortable before she left once more.

Every time Ace watched the nurse controlling his pain she felt as if her heart was breaking because pain relief was his only course of treatment now, and that reminded her that even when he had better days, he was still a dying man... But for now, he was not in pain and as he took hold of her hand he turned from the view of the sea beyond the open window and smiled.

"I'm so glad I found you, Ace," he said to her, "I'd been lonely all my life – I mean, there had been women, but none made me feel like you do. I just wish I hadn't met you at the end, I wish we could have had more time together. I would have done anything to make a life with you – I would have left my old life behind, walked away from everything -"

"I thought you said you had no one to miss back on earth?"

Ace looked at him with confusion clouding her eyes.

"Well...I sort of had a girlfriend, she didn't mean anything special to me.. I certainly didn't love her like I love you!"

Ace stared at him.

"But you said there was no one -"

"There isn't!" he insisted, and he coughed, and then he drew in a deep breath before he spoke again.

"She was more of a friend, nothing serious. I had no one close in my life. No one I could talk to how I talk with you, I couldn't have had that closeness with anyone. That's why it's so unfair I found you at the end. We should have had years together, that's what seems so unfair to me."

"But we have now," she reminded him, "And you're coping really well. You're no worse than you was a week ago, Devon. I think you're going to prove them all wrong. I think you're going to live for a long, long time."

He leaned back against the pillow and took in a slow breath as thoughts of his life back on Earth came to mind and the moment he smashed the radioactive seal played over and over in his head, repeating like a broken record.

"_Ace..."_

His voice was choked as tears filled his eyes and he gripped her hand tighter.

"What's wrong?" she said anxiously, recalling how the pain had taken hold so quickly hours before.

But Devon's mind was filled with recollection of the moment he had smashed the radioactive seal, thinking of nothing but stopping the countdown, stopping the explosion that would have destroyed Earth...

"_I don't want to die!" _he sobbed, _"I'm so scared...Please don't let me die, Ace!"_

She gently wrapped her arms around him and held him as he wept, and then as he drew in a weak breath and fought to compose his emotions, she saw fear in his eyes.

"_I keep thinking about it...I acted on instinct, I had to stop the timer...or everyone would have died. But they lived. They all lived and I'm the one who has to die, it's not fair!"_

"You did a brave thing!" Ace reminded him as she wiped away his years, "You saved the world, Devon!"

Another tear ran down his face.

"I saved it for everyone who gets to live," he said quietly, "My world is over, I'm dying."

"But you did something amazing!" Ace reminded him, "You saved the world! And I love you for being so selfless and courageous and -"

"Selfless?" he laughed bitterly, "Oh Ace, did you _really_ think that of me? I'm no hero, I'm just the stupid fool who didn't think before I acted, I made an impulsive choice and this is the consequence, a slow and painful death!"

"But that choice you made was the right one, it was the choice the Doctor would have made if he had been there!"

Devon shook his head.

"No, I think your Time Lord friend is far too wise after so many lifetimes to have thrown his life away like I did. He would have thought of another solution, he wouldn't have been so impulsive. He's too old, he's seen too much of the universe to make such a mistake."

Ace leaned closer and looked into his eyes.

"You saved the world and lost your own life in the process. And I love you Devon, I love you whether you live for another hour or another year. And even when you're gone, I'll still love you."

"And I'll love you beyond death if its possible," he promised her, and as their lips touched he closed his eyes, losing himself in a moment of warmth where love swept over him and he knew nothing and thought of nothing but holding Ace McShane and returning her kiss.

And then he pulled back from her embrace, coughing up blood and weakly struggling to sit up.

Ace grabbed a hand towel and quickly wiped it away. Devon coughed again but this time no blood choked him.

"Not again," Ace said anxiously, "Are you okay, is there any pain?"

Devon blinked, looked to Ace with startled eyes and shook his head.

"Not this time... I think it's stopped now."

And he rested against the pillow, briefly closing his eyes as he took in a few deep breaths to reassure himself.

"No, it's definitely stopped," he said as he looked at her, "I'm okay...for now."

Ace was shaking.

She guessed if it was visible, Devon hadn't noticed, but she could feel it, as if the sight of the blood had jarred her bones like a physical blow, a sharp reminder of his inevitable end.

"It was painful last time," he told her, "But the nurse gave me some strong pain relief. I'm not hurting at all, I can't feel anything."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," he promised her, and he gave her hand a squeeze.

Anxiety was in her eyes as she looked at him intently, desperate to be sure he was telling the truth and not trying to stop her from worrying. Worry had been her constant companion since she had learned of his diagnosis, and he had tried many times to play down the terrible pain he felt – but not today. She knew he could be nothing less than honest now, because he was weak and had broken down more than once that day as he thought about the hopelessness of his situation.

"I kept hoping the Doctor would have found a cure for me, that somewhere out in space and time there was a way to save my life," he added quietly.

"Even the Doctor can't save you," Ace replied as she used every ounce of her determination not to cry, "He told me, there is no cure for the type of radiation that affected you. That's why it was chosen to protect the power core."

"And knowing that makes it no easier to accept," he replied as he looked into her eyes,"I keep thinking about what I did, how many lives I saved and at the end of the day, I feel nothing but regret for losing my own in the process."

Ace stared at him.

"But you're a hero!"

He smiled briefly and shook his head.

"_No Ace, I made a choice without thinking, I made a mistake for myself no matter what the outcome for the rest of the world. Nobody wants to die. We all want to live forever, or be like your friend the Doctor, living on through life after life, never truly giving in to death. We all want to cheat the reaper. Including me! And I'm not a hero, you don't know who I was before the radiation, before I stopped the countdown. I was the man who saved the world but that was an act that took up a split second of a life in which I've been many other things - and not all of them good."_

She saw deep sincerity in his eyes and knowing that set her on edge.

"What are you trying to tell me?"

"That there are things you don't know about me and I'm glad you don't know. If you want to remember me when I'm gone and think of a hero, that's up to you. But I know exactly what I was like before this happened and I was no hero, Ace. And if I lived my life over again, if I had the chance to do that – I would be _exactly_ the same as before with no regrets, because that's who I really am. And you probably wouldn't have looked at me twice."

As she looked at him she wondered why she saw a flicker of something in his eyes she had never seen before – as if she was looking at a stranger...

"_There's a side to me you never knew," _he told her, _"Be glad about that."_

Ace drew in a deep breath, keeping hold of his hand as sure as she intended to keep her own view of the man she loved, seeing him as her hero, and casting aside all else he had told her.

"None of it matters now," she said to him, "All we have is now, today, tomorrow – next month, we can't think think ahead, too far, so why should you think back? We need to make the most of every moment."

And then the darkened look was gone from his eyes, replaced by the light of love as he smiled and gave her hand another squeeze.

"You make me happy," he whispered, and he closed his eyes and slipped into a deep sleep.

* * *

As the Doctor entered the apartment via the open patio door, he listened, heard no sound and went through to the hallway, and then up to the open door of the bedroom.

Ace was beside Devon, who was sleeping deeply. The Doctor watched as she stroked his hair and spoke in tones too soft to catch words as she watched over him.

He tapped quietly on the door and she turned her head and saw him standing there but did not smile. Her eyes had stopped lighting up at the sight of him since she had found out how much he had kept from her, and it still hurt him deep in his twin hearts to know that she resented his choices.

"How is he?" he asked her, and she let go of Devon's hand and left his bedside and made her way out of the room without making a sound.

Then Ace stood in the hallway and kept her voice low as she replied to his question.

"He's been coughing up blood again. But this time it didn't hurt."

And despite how tired she looked, she smiled.

"He's not in pain now. That's got to be a good thing."

"I'm sure it is," he replied, agreeing with her simply to spare her feelings yet again – Devon felt no pain because the pain relief dose was so high, and his body would not be able to tolerate much more of it...

"I wanted to ask if you needed anything," he added, "And I want you to know me and Laura are next door, don't forget that – we are here for you too. Don't shut us out if you need us."

"I can cope," Ace replied and he saw defiance burning in her eyes and understood that she needed him to back off.

"The offer's always there," he reminded her, "Just in case you need it."

"_ACE!"_

Devon had called her name weakly, but she heard fear in his voice.

"He needs me, Professor. He's scared to be alone."

And then she hurried back to his bedside, and the Doctor waited outside in the hallway, watching through the open door as Ace tried to comfort her dying lover.

* * *

As Devon looked up at Ace she saw fear in his eyes.

"I told you, don't leave me!" he said, "I don't want to fall asleep on my own...I might not wake up again..."

Ace stroked his hair as she looked into his eyes.

"Everything is fine," she whispered, "Don't be scared. I love you I'm here for you. I'll never leave you, Devon."

The sound of his strained and rapid breathing cut through a moment of silence as he looked at her, and then he began to relax once more.

"I know you won't leave me," he said weakly, "Come here, Ace..."

And she smiled as she climbed on to the bed and lay beside him, putting her arm around him. He rested his head on her shoulder and gave a sigh.

"I'm okay," he said softly, "I can sleep now."

And there was a faint trace of a smile about his lips as he he drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly and Ace kissed his cheek, and then she held him closer as he rested beside her.

And the Doctor turned away from the open door, his back against the wall as he tried to push away thoughts of his own self pity at the sight of Ace in her lover's arms. He didn't want to feel love for Ace, he wanted to step back and leave them alone together, he wanted to let go of his feelings for her – but it was impossible...

He heard Ace speak and turned his head.

She was still next to Devon, and she stroked his hair and then sat up, leaning over him.

"Devon?" she whispered again.

And then she studied his face, stroked his cheek and embraced him again.

"I love you so much," she said as she held him, and then she let go gently and touched his face, stroked his hair again and took hold of his hand.

"_I'm still here,"_ she whispered.

And the Doctor walked into the room and drew in a deep breath, knowing this time there could be no holding back from the truth:

Devon was beside her, his chest had fallen still and his eyes were half open.

He reached over and felt for a pulse but found none.

"Ace," he said softly.

"Don't say it," she whispered tearfully, "I know...just _don't_ say it and make it real!"

And the Doctor's hearts were breaking for her pain but he knew she had to hear it voiced aloud.

"_Ace," _he said gently, _"He's dead."_

And Ace kissed Devon's cheek, took a last look at him and then got off the bed.

"I'm here for you -"

"_DON'T!"_ she yelled, _"LEAVE ME ALONE!"_

And her face was streaked with tears and he reached for her again, but Ace pushed past him and ran down the hallway towards the open door.

* * *

The Doctor ran after her calling her name, but Ace did not look back as she opened the gate and ran on to the beach.

The Doctor followed, stopping as she reached the damp sand where the tide washed in and out and fell to her knees. She wrapped her hands about her body as if the pain had cut her in half and as she screamed and sobbed the sea breeze blew back her hair as tears ran from her eyes.

"Ace!" he called, and she turned her head and looked at him, eyes filled with grief and also anger as she recalled how much he had kept from her.

"_Go away!" _she yelled, _"I never want to see you again!"_

_And in that moment, the Doctor made his choice._

Ace saw him turn away. She knew he was leaving, he was walking away and it didn't matter any more.

_The Doctor was leaving forever and Ace knew it, and she didn't care, because she never wanted to see him again..._


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The Doctor knew what he was doing as he went back to the Tardis and closed the door.

His mind had been made up when he had caught the look of anger in her eyes, that look that said Ace wanted no more to do with him...

_She blamed him for so much._

_He had lost so much, too – and he was not the only one:_

_Devon was dead, Laura would soon finish work to find her lover and his Tardis gone, and Ace...as for her, life had changed forever in the most terrible way._

Even though he loved her and it wounded him to have seen her sharing her love with another man, he had wished there had been a cure for Devon because _anything_ had be better than seeing Ace's heart shattered by grief...

It was over, it was all over and he had lost Ace.

_Everyone had lost._

And then as he looked at the Tardis controls, he keyed in a new set of co ordinates, and the Tardis vanished from the Earth colony planet, racing through space and time to a brand new destination...

* * *

As the Tardis slowed to a halt and floated gently in orbit, he drew in a deep breath and thought about time and how the weight of responsibility a Time Lord carried was often too great to bear.

Time was a powerful thing to control, and he had certainly taken control this time...

_They were back at the start._

_No, before the start...they were close to Earth, and had arrived ten minutes earlier than before._

Yes, they had arrived, because he had spun time backwards, erasing the other time line.

As she walked into the console room he felt a lump in his throat and he struggled to hold back from weeping.

"Where are we going, Professor?" asked Ace, and he turned and looked at her, saw her bright eyes and her warm smile and she was looking at him the way she used to because nothing had gone wrong yet, and he was going to make sure it never did...

"For now, nowhere," he said, "We wait..."

"For what?"

A huge silver Cyber ship loomed up close to Earth.

"For that to happen," he said darkly, and worked quickly to use the scanning equipment and then threw a lever and pressed some buttons.

"The Cyberfleet are about the send down an army to attack a research base. I have to stop them. I've just locked on to their ship's main energy supply and as it's being used to power up the teleport machine, I'm going to scramble their regulatory power flow and switch the divert back into the main core of their ship."

And he slowly turned a dial.

The ship on the screen shuddered, and then exploded, Ace gave a gasp and covered her eyes against the white hot glare as it burned like a supernova, and then space was dark once more, save the sparkle of tiny stars.

She looked at the Doctor in surprise.

"Professor, you blew it up!"

"Yes I did," he replied as he opened a channel and prepared to make a call to Earth, "Now I have to inform UNIT, I need immediate clearance to go down there and remove the source of the trouble – they were after an alien power core that's being held by a research centre, I have to return it to the planet of origin before more hostile species come searching for it."

"You just stopped an invasion!" Ace exclaimed, "Wicked!"

He briefly smiled as he opened up the communications channel.

"I saved a _great _deal more than that, Ace," he muttered, and then the call was answered and he quickly explained the situation, and as he spoke he was already plotting co ordinates for landing.

* * *

As they landed on Earth inside the research facility, he thought of how things would have worked out in the other time line...he and Ace would not have arrived after the disaster, because he had destroyed the ship and stopped the invasion.

There would be no deaths at the research facility...

_Job done. The other time line was erased._

As he stepped out of the Tardis and into the corridor, the chief scientist was waiting to greet him, along with head of security.

"The Doctor!" exclaimed the scientist, "So nice to meet you. I've heard so much about you. I'm Professor Devon Travis."

And the Doctor shook his hand, and Ace smiled at him, and he glanced at her, briefly smiled and then turned his attention back to the Doctor.

"I understand you need to return the power core. That's fine by us because the booby traps that protect it are highly dangerous. I hope you know how to disarm them."

The Doctor smiled and held up his sonic screwdriver.

"I hope you have a spare radiation suit," he replied.

"I certainly do," Devon told him, "Come this way..."

And as they walked up the corridor Ace followed, looking around in interest as she wondered what the power core would look like.

"I've sealed off this lower section until the core is removed and safely contained," said Laura Smith, head of security.

The Doctor glanced at her but avoided her gaze as he thought of what he had chosen to give up, his own happiness at a the price of setting everything else right...or had he? Because ever since he had spun time backwards and Ace had greeted him with that smile he loved so dearly, the deep pain in his hearts had vanished...

"Thank you," he said to Laura, "I'm sure we can take it from here."

"I'll be guarding the main door," she said, and she walked away, and his hearts briefly ached, but then he heard Ace say how wicked it was down here in the research area, and just the sound of her voice warmed him to his ancient soul.

* * *

An hour later Ace watched through safety glass as the Doctor destroyed the power lines that linked to the nuclear device.

As the last wire severed, the radioactive seal disintegrated.

And then she watched as he and Professor Travis removed the glowing core, locked it in a secure container and then placed it in a sealed unit inside an equally protected locked case.

Then the two men left the chamber, the doors closed and they stood there as a jet of mist engulfed them, removing every trace of the alien radiation from their protective suits.

Two locked doors later they removed the suits, and then the Doctor and Devon stepped out of the chamber.

The Doctor put away his sonic screwdriver and shook hands with the man who, in another lifetime, had died to save the world.

"Thank you for your help, Professor," he said, "The remains of the alien technology is now safe to explore and take apart – but make sure it's thoroughly decontaminated first."

"I've already arranged for that," Devon replied, "I'm looking forward to taking that equipment apart. We were too afraid to try too much before, because of the explosive device, and of course the radioactive seal."

"And it's all deactivated now," the Doctor told him as he took the case from him, "And with the power core removed from this planet, there's no risk of alien invasion. I have to take this core now, it's like a beacon that any ship could pick up on far out in space."

And they headed back up the corridor towards the Tardis.

* * *

"It's been a pleasure to meet you, Doctor," Devon said, and shook his hand, "And you Miss McShane -"

"Professor Travis?"

He turned from Ace to see Laura approaching, leading a woman down the corridor to meet him.

"I'm sorry but she says it urgent -"

"That's fine," the Professor said in a weary voice, and he turned back to the Doctor, who recognised the woman beside Laura wearing dark sunglasses as Faith, the Professor's girlfriend.

"Sorry Doctor – this is personal stuff...again, it's been nice to meet you."

"Likewise," he replied thoughtfully, noticing the spark of anger in Devon's eyes as Laura walked away, leaving him alone with Faith, who walked up to him and said nothing, giving off an air of hostility.

He had thought there was more, and now he had worked it out...yes, there had been _much_ more, more than Devon, dying in the other time line, had ever told Ace...

"Come on Ace," the Doctor said, "Let's get back to the Tardis."

And she walked beside him, but on hearing raised voices, stopped and looked back:

"Why did you come here?" Devon fumed, and Faith took off her glasses revealing a black eye.

"What's the matter, scared your colleagues will find out? I told you I wanted answers, why did you do this to me? Did you hit your wife too, is that why she left you?"

Devon lowered his voice as he stepped closer, glaring at her.

"_I'll do it again if you get me started! Go home!"_

The Doctor and Ace had reached the Tardis.

He had opened the door but Ace was still standing there staring in disbelief as Devon continued to quarrel aggressively with Faith.

"What a scum bag!" she said, "I can't just stand here and let him treat her like that -"

"No, let it go, we have to this time," he said, grabbing her by the sleeve and pulling her into the Tardis.

* * *

The doors closed and he went over to the console, locked the power core beneath it and hit the controls, instantly transporting them back into deep space.

Ace was staring at him as the Tardis floated in the peaceful, star punctured darkness.

"I really wanted to give him a piece of my mind! Why did you stop me?"

The Doctor gave heavy sigh.

"Because I have to take the power core back to its planet of manufacture. And we need to keep out of Devon Travis's life, just this once, believe me when I say we can't alter anything, we've already changed enough."

His remark left her feeling confused.

"But all we did was remove the power core."

"Yes," he replied thoughtfully, "And under other circumstances, who knows what could have happened? If we hadn't stopped the Cyber attack, Devon might have been the one to stop the theft of the power core. He could have saved the world from the nuclear countdown when they tripped the alarm, he could have smashed the radioactive seal and removed the core, killing himself in the process. In another life, he could have saved the world."

And Ace laughed as she shook her head.

"That wife beating scum bag? No way, Professor!"

And as he looked into her eyes he felt a huge wave of relief.

Everything was restored, back the way it was before.

He would miss Laura and the memories of the other time line, and all they had shared would always be locked away in his hearts, but the one he needed most was here, and still wanted to share his life, and he could _definitely _live with that conclusion...

"I'm going to set a course for Xethea, return the power core and then take you on a nice trip around the galaxies and hopefully avoid further trouble for a while. I think it's time we took a holiday."

She smiled and her eyes lit up and he wanted to tell her he loved her, the words played out so easily in his head but remained stuck in his throat, and he guessed they always would...

"That sounds ace!" she exclaimed, and then she left the console room with a smile on her face.

* * *

The Doctor stood alone, leaning against the console as he fixed his gaze on the view of space and stars as the Tardis gently moved through time.

He thought of Laura and how he would never hold her again, and then he thought of Ace and guessed he still had her but only in the way he had always had her in his life – she still didn't know he loved her, and most likely never would...

He had stopped the deaths at the base, stopped Devon from being poisoned, stopped everything and changed the time line.

It had turned out for the best, but even then, it was a hollow victory.

It felt like checkmate all round:

Ace and Devon would never fall in love – although it looked as if Ace had actually had a lucky escape on that...

And he would never know Laura.

And they were back here in the Tardis, him and Ace, with him nursing his secret love for her and never daring to voice it aloud.

The only good thing to come out of it all was the Cyberman attack had been stopped before it started.

_No one had died._

_No one had lost._

_But this time, nobody won, either..._

** End.**


End file.
